Was $150 a barrel oil speculators or Peak Oil?

As the oil price run-up continued throughout the first half of 2008, I conceded that probably about $20/bbl of oil at its peak price was speculation, but that much of the run-up was in fact a reflection of Peak Oil, with global instability, war premiums, etc. becoming more pricey with tighter supply as well.

Last Sunday, 60 Minutes pushed hard on the opposite angle.

I’m still skeptical that speculators had that much to do with it; nonetheless, my skepticism was lessened by the degree to which commodities traders opposed more regulation late last summer, and by how rapidly prices fell once the credit crunch hit.

On 60 Minutes, Dan Gilligan, president of the Petroleum Marketers of America said Morgan Stanley, not ExxonMobil, was America’s largest oil company.

That said, if commodities traders and hedge funds are partially responsible, it’s yet another mistake for which we can “thank” Obama’s ecoonomic Swengali, Larry Summers, and yet another boo-boo for which he has not apologized.
And, we need actual regulation, not regulation talk, from the new Congress.