US-Saudi Complicity in Falling Oil Prices?

[georgephillip]

"Are falling oil prices part of a US-Saudi plan to inflict economic damage on Russia, Iran and Venezuela..."

If so, it's a ploy first used against Saddam Hussein in the 1980s.

"John Kerry, the US secretary of state, allegedly struck a deal with King Abdullah in September under which the Saudis would sell crude at below the prevailing market price.

"That would help explain why the price has been falling at a time when, given the turmoil in Iraq and Syria caused by Islamic State, it would normally have been rising.

"The Saudis did something similar in the mid-1980s.

"Then, the geopolitical motivation for a move that sent the oil price to below $10 a barrel was to destabilize Saddam Hussein’s regime.

"This time, according to Middle East specialists, the Saudis want to put pressure on Iran and to force Moscow to weaken its support for the Assad regime in Syria… (Stakes are high as US plays the oil card against Iran and Russia, Guardian)"

Irreversible Decline CounterPunch Tells the Facts Names the Names

 

[georgephillip]

What role does market share play in the decline of oil prices, and what other factors might be involved?
"Certainly there’s a strong case to be made for market share.

"No one denies that.

"If the Saudis keep prices at rock bottom for a prolonged period of time, then a high percentage of the producers (that can’t survive at prices below $70 per barrel) will default leaving OPEC with greater market share and more control over pricing.

So market share is certainly a factor.

"But is it the only factor?

Is it so far fetched to think that the United States–which in the last year has imposed harsh economic sanctions on Russia, made every effort to sabotage the South Stream pipeline, and toppled the government in Kiev so it could control the flow of Russian gas to countries in the EU–would coerce the Saudis into flooding the market with oil in order to decimate the Russian economy, savage the ruble, and create favorable conditions for regime change in Moscow?

"Is that so hard to believe?

Irreversible Decline CounterPunch Tells the Facts Names the Names

 

[High_Gravity]

Good, fuck Iran, China and Venezfucinuela.

 

[georgephillip]

Good, fuck Iran, China and Venezfucinuela.

Where you around in '73?
“In 1973, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat convinced Saudi King Faisal to cut production and raise prices, then to go as far as embargoing oil exports, all with the goal of punishing the United States for supporting Israel against the Arab states.

"It worked.

"The 'oil price shock' quadrupled prices.

It happened again in 1986, when Saudi Arabia..."

Money talks...

Irreversible Decline CounterPunch Tells the Facts Names the Names

 

[High_Gravity]

Good, fuck Iran, China and Venezfucinuela.

Where you around in '73?
“In 1973, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat convinced Saudi King Faisal to cut production and raise prices, then to go as far as embargoing oil exports, all with the goal of punishing the United States for supporting Israel against the Arab states.

"It worked.

"The 'oil price shock' quadrupled prices.

It happened again in 1986, when Saudi Arabia..."

Money talks...

Irreversible Decline CounterPunch Tells the Facts Names the Names

So?

 

[georgephillip]

So?

Fuck Saudi Arabia, Wall Street, and all those who get rich from blood for oil.

 

[High_Gravity]

So?

Fuck Saudi Arabia, Wall Street, and all those who get rich from blood for oil.

Ok, and?

 

[georgephillip]

So?

Fuck Saudi Arabia, Wall Street, and all those who get rich from blood for oil.

Ok, and?

More blood for oil:

"As Obama traveled to Saudi Arabia after the outbreak of the Ukraine crisis last March, the Guardian wrote, 'Angered by the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, the Saudis turned on the oil taps, driving down the global price of crude until it reached $20 a barrel (in today’s prices) in the mid-1980s…

"'[Today] the Saudis might be up for such a move—which would also boost global growth—in order to punish Putin over his support for the Assad regime in Syria. Has Washington floated this idea with Riyadh? It would be a surprise if it hasn’t.' (Alex Lantier,Imperialism and the ruble crisis, World Socialist Web Site)"
Irreversible Decline CounterPunch Tells the Facts Names the Names