Mideast

By Win Thin Oil prices are lower today despite Saudi comments that it is cutting output because the market is oversupplied. Saudi Oil Minister al-Naimi said that his nation cut output to 8.29 bbl/day in March from 9.13 mln bbl/day in…

World War II was the last war the United States fought with a formal declaration of war. The wars fought since have had congressional approval, both in the sense that resolutions were passed and that Congress appropriated funds, but the…

Here's a fabulous look into the political economy of oil by Andy Lees. His view is that the era of cheap oil is over. But, more than that, natural resources as a whole are increasingly dear. And a world of dwindling natural resources has…

This morning's note from UBS' Andy Lees addresses something about which I am sceptical regarding the escalating Libyan conflict: global spare oil capacity. I am in the same camp with Jeremy Grantham. Call it peak resources, peak oil,…

Oil prices are moving higher today, due largely to news about Libya and OPEC. Algerian Oil Minister said that there was no shortage in the global oil markets and that an emergency OPEC meeting is not needed now. It also appears that…

Hugo Chavez as peacemaker? Color us skeptical. Chavez is hardly an impartial third party in this conflict, as he has cozied up to Qaddafi over the years. As such, we would not expect opposition forces to be very open to any sort of Chavez…

By Marin Katusa, Casey’s Energy Report The oil picture is always complex, but right now things are about as complicated as they can get. The unrest in Egypt has settled for the moment, but the future there is not yet clear as the…

The Absolute Return Letter, March 2011 By Niels Jensen “Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes” Oscar Wilde A remarkable month Two remarkable events unfolded during the month of February. One cleared…

If you thought this year was off to a challenging start for investors, fasten your seatbelts. March could very well turn out to be the most important month of the year. This does not mean there is easy money to be made or low-hanging fruit…

Daniel Yergin is the author of the Pulitzer-Prize winning book 'The Prize', a stellar run through of the oil industry that is on Credit Writedowns' recommended reading list. Below is a twenty-minute interview of Yergin by the Wall Street…