A Saudi-U.S.-Russia Oil Deal Is Not a Good Idea
In the throes of the coronavirus pandemic, the world needs cheap oil and competition. Joined-up interventions to prop up the price are a bad way to go.
Who likes those oil prices?
Photographer: JUAN MABROMATA/AFPOil markets are sending confusing signals at a time when more confusion is the last thing anyone needs. When Russia walked out on OPEC+ rather than contribute to more output cuts, Saudi Arabia turned on the crude taps. Whatever Riyadh’s intention, this “price war” was quickly made meaningless by the impact of the new coronavirus on global oil demand. The price collapse has been beyond anything anyone could have imagined.
Now, storage room for crude is becoming scarce. Analysts warn darkly that plunging prices may threaten global economic stability. Equities follow the oil price news. Everyone seems to agree that prices should stop falling; and yet no one seems to argue that a very low oil price is exactly what the world’s economy needs to recover.