Experts predict oil prices to be in vicinity of USD 100 pb
International oil prices are expected to be in the neighborhood of USD 100 per barrel (pb), but they could edge up in the future as long as influential factors remain unchanged, oil experts believe. However, the dip in global oil prices in April is not worrisome for producing countries as the international oil market is still largely firm, the experts told KUNA separately.
Factors affecting world oil prices have been stable in spite of some transient problems such as the recent row between the US and North Korea, said Dr. Talal Al-Bathali, an oil expert and professor with Kuwait University.
Stable oil prices are mainly due to static demand for oil in European countries, while fluctuation is often owing to events in Middle East countries, he added. He admitted that it was uneasy to predict oil prices in the coming period, given that unexpected events could took place in the foreseeable future, but he believed that global oil prices could skyrocket to USD 200 or 250 pb within five or 10 years.
However, the Kuwaiti oil expert reassured producing countries that West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude would not fall below USD 80 pb in the second quarter of this year. He advised the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to decide to keep its oil supplies unchanged when it convenes in late May.
For his part, Oil Expert Khaled Boodai said there should not be any worry about the current oil prices, and the Brent oil level hitting USD 103 pb was reassuring. He ascribed the recent fall in oil prices, exactly since the advent of April, to the fact that speculators have directed to investment in stocks, which have recently shot up.
Speculation plays a major role in affecting global oil prices, he said, adding that the drop in oil prices does not necessarily mean an extraordinary hike in oil supply and low demand. He cited the International Energy Agency (IEA) as forecasting 2013 to see an oil demand increase in the vicinity of 800,000 or a million barrels per day (pbd).
Boodai also reassured that the oil position is so strong that it would remain as a main source of energy for at least 25 years to come. The Kuwaiti oil expert pointed out that shale oil reserves could not stand as a real rival to conventional oil for the time being unless the USD-80-pb production cost dips below 50 percent.
The current global oil reserves, which are estimated at around 1.5 trillion, are enough for 45 years to come, he said, expecting international oil prices to be in the neighborhood of USD 100-105 pb in the second quarter of this year.
International oil prices are expected to be in the neighborhood of USD 100 per barrel (pb), but they could edge up in the future as long as influential factors remain unchanged, oil experts believe. However, the dip in global oil prices in April is not worrisome for producing countries as the international oil market is still largely firm, the experts told KUNA separately.
Factors affecting world oil prices have been stable in spite of some transient problems such as the recent row between the US and North Korea, said Dr. Talal Al-Bathali, an oil expert and professor with Kuwait University.
Stable oil prices are mainly due to static demand for oil in European countries, while fluctuation is often owing to events in Middle East countries, he added. He admitted that it was uneasy to predict oil prices in the coming period, given that unexpected events could took place in the foreseeable future, but he believed that global oil prices could skyrocket to USD 200 or 250 pb within five or 10 years.
However, the Kuwaiti oil expert reassured producing countries that West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude would not fall below USD 80 pb in the second quarter of this year. He advised the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to decide to keep its oil supplies unchanged when it convenes in late May.
For his part, Oil Expert Khaled Boodai said there should not be any worry about the current oil prices, and the Brent oil level hitting USD 103 pb was reassuring. He ascribed the recent fall in oil prices, exactly since the advent of April, to the fact that speculators have directed to investment in stocks, which have recently shot up.
Speculation plays a major role in affecting global oil prices, he said, adding that the drop in oil prices does not necessarily mean an extraordinary hike in oil supply and low demand. He cited the International Energy Agency (IEA) as forecasting 2013 to see an oil demand increase in the vicinity of 800,000 or a million barrels per day (pbd).
Boodai also reassured that the oil position is so strong that it would remain as a main source of energy for at least 25 years to come. The Kuwaiti oil expert pointed out that shale oil reserves could not stand as a real rival to conventional oil for the time being unless the USD-80-pb production cost dips below 50 percent.
The current global oil reserves, which are estimated at around 1.5 trillion, are enough for 45 years to come, he said, expecting international oil prices to be in the neighborhood of USD 100-105 pb in the second quarter of this year.