Spikes and troughs
Only real supply-side intervention has stopped oil-price volatility. But those days are gone, argues Bob McNally's new book
If you need an example of a market best not left to the invisible hand, oil is it. Its price gyrations can destroy producers or hamstring consumer economies. And yet "extreme volatility… is an intrinsic feature of the oil industry," writes Bob McNally in a new book.* Everyone wants price stability—the foundation on which to make investment decisions and plan economies. But the market, says McNally, president of the Rapidan Group and a former energy advisor to the White House, isn't about to yield it. Forget the deal between Opec and non-Opec producers—Saudi Arabia's recent decision to cut oil output is not going to bring the prolonged period of calm everyone seeks. Since 2014, notes McNally,
Also in this section
10 March 2026
From Venezuela to Hormuz, the US—backed by the most powerful military force ever assembled—is redrawing not only oil and gas flows but also the global balance of energy power
10 March 2026
By shutting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has cut exports of distillate-rich Middle Eastern crude, jet fuel and diesel, and is holding the energy market hostage
10 March 2026
Eni’s director for global gas and LNG portfolio, Cristian Signoretto, discusses how demand will respond to rising LNG supply, and how the company is expanding its own gas and LNG operations through disciplined, capital-efficient investments
9 March 2026
Petroleum Economist analysis sees increases in output from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Kazakhstan among others before region’s murky descent
