Manipulating The Price of Oil

Yesterday’s closure of the Prudhoe Field on Alaska’s North Slope was followed by a more than $2 jump in the per dollar price of oil to near its all time high. The increase prompts new outrage about the price, and questions about whether the price is manipulated or not, and if so how.

Price is a function of supply and demand. That’s an ABC we all drink in at our mother’s breast. If it ain’t there, you cain’t have any. But supply and demand of what? Let’s look first at the different ways price is determined, and the elements of supply and demand which enter into the picture.

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