Oil’s up – up, up and away - by the look of things. A month ago Brent Crude was at $110 a barrel. Now that’s above $125 a barrel. And by the time this hits the streets it’ll probably be beyond $130 or more.
With some headlines screaming this month - “Saudi unrest could see oil soar to $300 a barrel” - you know that we are in new territory, although there wasn’t much to back up the headline.
Apparently West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) is the indicator of choice of the oil experts. Those experts reckon if WTI hits €150 per barrel we could go into a global double dip recession. At the moment it is just under €110 per barrel.
Previously commentators on the industry noted that the oil price going up was throttling the smaller operations throughout the country.
Here we go again with another slow and inexorable asphyxiation, and who knows how many will survive this time. Geopolitical unrest is obviously a major factor, but it seems like this is the way things are going, no matter what.
Alternative sources of energy and alternative modes of living and working are now priorities for individuals and businesses alike.
Like black swan events, when one is in the midst of a paradigm shift it is hard to actually see it. Hindsight will be the teller.
