Tuesday, May 27, 2008

George Soros on the price of oil...


I don't agree with George Soros on much, but he looks at the recent run up of oil prices and sees what I see - a bubble. Below is the report from the UK's Daily Telegraph newspaper:


George Soros: rocketing oil price is a bubble
By Edmund Conway, Economics Editor
Last Updated: 12:53am BST 27/05/2008


Speculators are largely responsible for driving crude prices to their peaks in recent weeks and the record oil price now looks like a bubble, George Soros has warned.

The billionaire investor's comments came only days after the oil price soared to a record high of $135 a barrel amid speculation that crude could soon be catapulted towards the $200 mark.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Mr Soros said that although the weak dollar, ebbing Middle Eastern supply and record Chinese demand could explain some of the increase in energy prices, the crude oil market had been significantly affected by speculation.

"Speculation... is increasingly affecting the price," he said. "The price has this parabolic shape which is characteristic of bubbles," he said.



The comments are significant, not only because Mr Soros is the world's most prominent hedge fund investor but also because many experts have claimed speculation is only a minor factor affecting crude prices.

Oil prices stalled on Friday after their biggest one-day jump since the first Gulf War earlier in the week.

At just over $130 a barrel, the price has doubled in around a year, causing misery for motorists and businesses.

0 comments: