Peak Oil: Are Oil Prices Destined to Rise Again?
http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2008/10/...
Crude oil futures continued down on Friday, spooked by the dim outlook for the U.S. economy. That’s precisely what makes it likely oil prices will rebound next year.
Big oil companies are already finding it harder to maintain, let alone increase, production. Chevron doubled its third-quarter net profit, but said production fell 5.7% in the quarter, after ExxonMobil reported an 8% production drop yesterday.
Falling oil prices are only going to accelerate that trend, analysts warn, at a time when OPEC is accelerating output cuts and production declines at oil fields around the world is apparently increasing.
Supply Worries Persist in Oil Market, Just Not Now
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122566263547491387...
While oil may be at its cheapest in months, prices deep in the future reveal a market with serious concerns about long-term supply.
As evidence, analysts point to charts of crude oil futures. Oil for delivery years from now costs more than oil for imminent sale, and the difference has widened. While front-month crude is down 53% from its July peak, oil contracts for later delivery dates have fallen far less.
For example, as recently as last summer, December 2008 and December 2013 crude-oil futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange cost the same. Now, the 2008 contract is $21.50 a barrel below 2013, an unprecedented discount.