OPEC Is Back In The Driver’s Seat

OPEC Is Back In The Driver’s Seat

Share to Linkedin VIENNA, AUSTRIA - OCTOBER 05: Secretary-General of OPEC Haitham al-Ghais (R) and Saudi Arabia's ... [+] Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al-Saud (2nd L) hold a press conference after the 33rd OPEC (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and non-OPEC ministerial meeting, which was held to evaluate the market conditions and to discuss the production amount to be applied as of November, in Vienna, Austria on October 05, 2022. (Photo by Askin Kiyagan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) One of the benefits of having a well-stocked Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) is that it makes it harder for oil-exporting countries to wage economic war on the U. S. by manipulating oil prices. One of the worst bear markets in U. S. history was precipitated by an oil embargo by the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC). In October 1973, OAPEC (the Arab members of OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia) declared an oil embargo against the United States and several of our allies. The embargo was a response to support for Israel during the Yom Kippur War. U. S. oil production had been in decline for three years at that point, and we were importing about 6