Isn't nice that the Orange POS just boosted Putin's wealth by $billions?
Bloomberg shows price of oil skyrocketing.
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Not sure what the number is today but that was the number kicked out at a financial conference in 2014. Of course, the way it gets to that balance is on the largest oil consuming nation's citizens - us.
IIRC, Saudi and most middle east countries can pull oil out of the ground around 8-12 bucks and they need about $35/bbl to manage their budget. I think Russia pulls it up around 18-19/bbl.
Russia's issue is that they've got a much higher spending rate than the middle east countries so where the middle east countries can break even with a $20-25 spread, Russia needs that $65/bbl spread to pay the bills.
And, as you can see - we're hard at work helping to balance the Russian's budget deficit. And they call us "globalists".
For perspective, it opened the day right around 70. Tanked to about 67.50 on the CNN rumor that Trump was NOT going to pull out of the deal and then regained its losses when it was clear that CNN was wrong. So...you think the oil business has a vested interest in this decision.
Oil closed on election day at $45.34 and is up $25 bucks (54%) since then. The average American, across all uses, consumes about 2bbls/day so our average cost per citizen is up $50/month or about $600/year. That number tends to be higher in rural areas where driving distances are longer and home heating with oil is more common.
At a conference a couple years ago, I heard two memorable quotes about Russia.
The first, from Condi Rice - "If you think about Russia as a gang with a gas station, you'll know everything you need to understand how they make decisions".
The second, from an consultant whose name I can remember - "The difference between Russia and the United States is that both have Presidents but only the US has a Presidency". The point he was trying to make is that the Presidency (the one DJT is tearing down daily) is so much more valuable on the world stage than the individual holding the office.
In wanting everything to be about him, Trump's narcissistic rage is focused squarely on the Presidency and the accomplishments of ALL those who came before him. To hear him tell it, it's a damned miracle the country got out of 1776 without him. Total asshat - but don't get me started.
