Sometimes a story grows legs, other times it hits the dust. But yesterday’s front page story in the Independent about negotiations to end oil trading in dollars seems to have hit a raw nerve and sent shock-waves through the currency markets. In response to the story, gold is now trading at record levels and the … Read More
oil trading
Oil Traders to Ditch the Dollar…
The dollar is sliding on the currency markets this morning after reports by the Independent newspaper that Arab states are in secret talks with China, Russia and France to stop using the US currency for oil trading. The move – if it happens – would be the most profound financial change in recent Middle East … Read More
Justice for 30,000 Trafigura Victims
Take one of the world’s largest oil traders, the world’s most famous libel law firms and one of the most famous spin doctors and spin a trail of devious pollution, deaths, mass injury, lies and legal threats. You have the story of Trafigura, that could be finally reaching its closing chapter. The British oil trading … Read More
Twelve Dollars a Year
In the late winter of 2006, the citizens of Burlington, Vermont prepared to elect one of five candidates to a three-year term for an open mayor’s seat. At one forum, a citizen stood up and asked, “Within the next mayoral term, it’s likely the price of oil will hit $90 a barrel and gas will … Read More
Pardon My Skepticism
On March 5, the New York Times published a front-page story called “Oil Innovations Pump New Life Into Old Wells.” Getting new oil from “played out” wells was the thrust of the piece; as the price of oil rises, it becomes worthwhile investing new money into old wells. The article also indirectly took on the … Read More
Iran Asks Oil Buyers to Pay in Euros
The world’s fourth largest oil exporter, Iran, is seeking payment for oil sales in euros as it shifts currency reserves out of dollars. The State-owned National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), acting under instructions from the Central Bank of Iran, has inserted a new clause in oil supply contracts that allows it to request payment in … Read More