Here’s a turn-up for the books: we have such a vast oversupply of houses in the UK that Gordon Brown is proposing to spend £200m to buy up some of the excess.
Who cares if oil is bullish or bubbly? Prices are going up, baby. Why ask why?
In the energy market Tuesday, crude for June delivery roared to new intraday and closing records, finishing at $121.84/barrel, up $1.87, after an intraday peak of $122.73. June reformulated gasoline gained 6 cents, to $3.12/gallon.
It’s enough to set off one’s contrarian radar. I mean, predictions of $200-a-barrel oil have been everywhere over the last week. CIBC analyst Jeff Rubin, with an eerily accurate track record of previous predictions, kicked it off last week with a forecast of $225 by 2012 with $7 gasoline to match.
Oil-consuming countries and international oil producers no longer influence oil prices, reports AFP, as a global gathering of energy elite gets underway in Rome and the price of New York oil struck a historic peak at $114.49 per barrel.
International oil majors now control a mere 6% of oil and 20% of gas reserves, according to the report. The rest is in the hands of national oil companies.
The unpalatable reality is that national producers such as Venezuela or Russia today have less need of international oil majors to help them develop their untapped reserves.
