3 ms·
The article also states that these companies intentionally held oil back. Storing millions off-shore in tankers or in storage to simulate demand. It was a good
by Quarrelsome 17y ago
The article also states that these companies intentionally held oil back. Storing millions off-shore in tankers or in storage to simulate demand.
It was a good read.
My Dad (an accountant who used to work in the city and used to be head treasurer of a FTSE 100 company) was of the opinion that the rush into trading futures was a bad idea.
- Tichy 17y ago"The article also states that these companies intentionally held oil back. Storing millions off-shore in tankers or in storage to simulate demand." That is not illegal afaik. It is just economics textbook 101, and last I heard the general consensus among economists is that trying to create artificial shortages does not work in the long run. Also the oil producers have tried to artificially shorten supply for decades, with little success (that is why OPEC was formed). Storing oil away also carries risk: if oil is short, people look for alternatives (saving energy, alternative energy sources, and so on). So the oil you stowed away loses it's value, the longer you store it. I remember reading recently about some oil producing nations to deliberately sell MORE oil to avoid their clients looking for alternatives. It also is not a scam: you can not simply store oil somewhere, first you have to buy it. Why wouldn't you be allowed to do what you want with the oil you bought?