By Barkley Rosser at Econospeak

Has the oil price drop come to an end?

Very likely. Reports from November report that the Saudi government has been preparing its budget for the price of oil to be between $45 and $50 per barrel.  The price rose during the last two days and fell slightly today, with Brent crude currently sitting at $48.21 amid rumors of the Saudis playing games in the forward markets.  They can afford to do so and have the whip hand on what the world price is.

So, folks, this may be it.  The Saudis have let the price fall about as far as they want it to, but no further.  If the price stabilizes for some time about where it is now, you first heard it here.  I am not going to attempt to forecast when it might make another move up from this zone, although the Saudi Minister of Petroleum has been quoted as saying, “Do not expect to see prices above $100 per barrel again,” although that cannot be ruled out in the longer run.

Barkley Rosser