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Title: Oil markets in turmoil: an economic analysis

Book ·
OSTI ID:6867107

Departing from conventional wisdom about the forces most responsible for oil price increases, this book analyzes the response of consumers, oil companies, and oil-exporting nations to show that lethargy, not greed, best describes the behavior of these participants during a supply disruption. The adjustment to changes in market conditions is so slow that minor incidents are transformed into major crises. Assessing existing policy options, Verleger dispels the idea of matching supply losses with an equal cut in consumption. He recommends a free-market approach, which entails raising prices quickly, imposing large tariffs on imports, encouraging the development of private stockpiles, and using spot prices as an indicator of oil shortages. He shows that the market approach will impose fewer costs than the regulatory approach in the long run. 83 references, 17 figures, 70 tables.

OSTI ID:
6867107
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English