Publication

Oil prices have repeatedly hit new record highs in recent weeks. Since early October, oil has regularly traded for over $50 per barrel in New York. This trend, however, is no reason to conjure up fears of a new oil crisis comparable with those of the 1970s. Western industrialized countries have since changed fundamentally, and their economies are far less dependent on oil. Those to suffer most from the high price of oil will be developing countries that have little or no oil but instead have high foreign debts and severe trade deficits.