Turkish Forum

Tag: oil prices

  • Iran Threatens To Send ‘OIL’ To $200 A Barrel

    Iran Threatens To Send ‘OIL’ To $200 A Barrel

    War in the Economic Jugular Vein of the World

    Iran Oil HurmuzBy Steve Christ

    Are you ready for ‘OIL’ to skyrocket to $200 a barrel?

    Iran is!

    And, they’re prepared to play their trump card to send it there.

    Faced with a rash of mysterious explosions, military drones caught flying overhead, and renewed promises to end their nuclear ambitions, the Iranians are threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz — otherwise known as “the economic jugular vein of the world” — again.

    As Iranian lawmaker Parviz Sarvari said yesterday, “Soon we will hold a military maneuver on how to close the Strait of Hormuz. If the world wants to make the region insecure, we will make the world insecure.”

    The announcement came just weeks after Iran’s energy minister told Al Jazeera television that Tehran was prepared to use oil as a political tool in any “conflict over its nuclear program.”

    Given Iran’s dominance over this bottleneck for oil exports from the Persian Gulf, this is a promise they can likely keep…

    Today’s price of $100 a barrel doesn’t even come close to pricing in the geopolitical calamity closing the Persian Gulf would present.

    Just 34 miles wide, thirteen tankers carrying 15.5 million barrels of crude oil pass through the Strait each day, making it one of the world’s most important waterways.

    In all, 33% of the oil shipped via tankers passes through the Strait of Hormuz.

    The Strait is so vital to the world economy, its closure would be considered an act of war that only the U.S. Navy has the power to fix…

    www.wealthdaily.com, December 13th, 2011

  • Biggest spending squeeze on families since 1921

    Biggest spending squeeze on families since 1921

    pocketmoney PINKY
    Squeezed: relative spending power is down to the lowest levels since 1921

    Families are facing the biggest peace-time squeeze in their spending power since 1921 as wages fail to keep up with soaring inflation, according to a new report.

    The rising cost of essential items such as oil, utility bills, food and clothes are set to leave the average household with £910 a year less to spend in 2011 than two years ago, said the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR).

    Disposable incomes are due to fall by 2% in 2011, following a 0.8% drop in 2010, as cash-strapped consumers suffer the biggest hit to their finances apart from during World War Two and the recession following the First World War, it added.

    It forecasts that inflation will average 3.9% in 2011 – its highest since 1992 – as January’s hike in VAT to 20% from 17.5% and the rising cost of oil and other commodities continue to drive up prices.

    Pay packets, on the other hand, will rise just 1.9% as unemployment remains high and the public sector makes cut-backs.

    But the Government’s austerity drive is “only a minor element in the squeeze on household incomes”, with the soaring cost of commodities being the major factor, claimed the report.

    Commodity prices are being driven higher by surging demand from emerging economies such as China and supply shocks including the conflict in Libya, which is impacting the price of oil.

    The lack of consumer spending power means the economy will only grow by 1% in 2011 and will be “subdued” for the next two or three years, said the consultancy. Its forecast is significantly below the 1.7% predicted by Government’s Office for Budget Responsibility.

    The CEBR’s report echoes the views of Bank of England governor Mervyn King who earlier this year said consumers’ finances were facing their biggest squeeze since the 1920s.

    A spate of retailers have reported tough conditions on the high street in 2011 as consumers remain cautious, with HMV and Dixons Retail which owns Currys and PC World reporting disappointing profits.

    www.thisislondon.co.uk, 11 Apr 2011