Russia

Submitted by Allen Gilmer via OilPrice.com,

The one given in this industry is that the analyst community is consistently wrong about where the price of oil is going in the near to mid-term. Just as $100 oil was a sentiment driven price that baked in the risk of every potential negative impact on the supply chain, $28, $30 or $40 dollars is equally sentimental, assuming that any and all incremental barrels are and will be available AND demand will slow or stop.

2013 and 2015 forecasts. (forecasting sentiment is hard) Image Sources: EIA

The reason why oil has stormed higher from down over 3% to up well over $30 in the span of hours (and dragging futures higher with it), was - as observed earlier - news that Iraq’s Oil Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said that both Saudi Arabia and Russia, the world’s biggest oil producers, "are now more flexible about cooperating to cut output as crude prices have fallen to levels that hydrocarbon-rich nations didn’t foresee."

Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused the Turkish government of making “a huge mistake” in the shooting down of their warplane over Syria in November.  Putin says that Russia’s sanctions against Turkey’s “war crime” have been moderate in contrast to more extreme actions they could take in the future. Fort Russ reports: According to him, measures against Turkey will not affect existing contracts in the construction industry, as this may cause damage to Russia.

Based on secret evidence, a British inquiry, under orders from Washington, has decided that the death of Alexander Litvinenko ten years ago, was “probably” ordered by the Russian President Vladamir Putin. The Russian Foreign Ministry have dismissed the British report and blames London for politicizing the “purely criminal” case of Litvinenko’s death.

The political landscape of the world is rapidly changing thanks to the collaboration between Russia, China, and Iran who promise to create an alternative to the Western New World Order, according to journalist Carol Gould.  Gould and other experts say that the convergence of these countries signifies the emergence of a new global paradigm, or a new ‘New World Order’, out of the chaos and crisis currently engulfing the West. Fort Russ reports: “What happened this weekend with the signing of the 17 trade agreements (between Iran and China.