What Adds Up to $80 a Barrel Oil

You would not know that we were in the midst of a modest economic recovery when examining the price of oil these days. At $80 a barrel, which we witnessed this past week, the price of the precious commodity is about $60 above its 20 year average.

The math adds up for the region

Prior to the downturn, there were real capacity constraints due in large part because China and India started to mop up any extra production the market had on offer. Global economists miscalculated the strength of that demand. The latest growth figures from Beijing suggest that eight percent plus growth will be at our doorstep in 2010.

I had a chance to catch up with the core group of ministers, senior executives and those who consult the industry at the annual Oil and Money conference in London. Prices are double what they were a year ago, when we did not know whether some of the world