Word: bbl
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Dates: during 2000-2000
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...flow of crude, which the victorious West has allowed to flow into Western markets since 1996. Or if the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries makes good on threats to rein in crude-oil supplies in 2001. The Clinton Administration's decision last September to release some 30 million bbl. of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) did little to cool the crude market, and since then Middle East turmoil and strong global demand have kept traders on edge. At the same time, global refining capacity is strained to the limit. "When you have a market this tight...
...Colder than usual temperatures are forecast for North America, and inventories of home heating oil and natural gas are at what the U.S. Energy Department calls "alarmingly low levels." That's the classic formula for a price spike that could quickly drive the cost of oil above $40 per bbl., a level that, if sustained for any significant length of time, could inflict considerable damage on the U.S. and global economies. O.K., that's the scare-your-pants-off scenario. At the moment, though, most experts are more optimistic. Despite the capacity strains, they don't think the oil pinch...
...scare stories to pass, though, cooperation from OPEC is essential. The only problem with this notion is that many countries in the 11-member organization feel short of cash, a hangover from the time, only two years ago, when oil was selling at close to $10 per bbl. That cost such major producer countries as Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Venezuela tens of billions of dollars in revenue and has left OPEC wary of increasing supplies beyond the 3.7 million bbl. a day it has released onto the world market so far this year...
...tech stocks. Lighten up, maybe. There are plenty of other things to own, including bonds. Before tech lifts off again, some surprise sector will have soared. Who thought utilities would rise 40% this year? Reasonable candidates to charge ahead next are energy (if oil stays over $25 per bbl.) and regional banks (if severe credit problems don't surface and the Fed cuts rates). Get rid of margin debt, definitely. And lower your expectations for future returns. But stay invested. Everyone in my small survey expected the Dow to be hitting new highs sometime next year...
...list of what ails Wall Street is long, and not all items are easily dismissed. It's hard to find something great about oil at $30 per bbl., for example. The world is less dependent on oil than it was 20 years ago, and so far the higher costs haven't stoked inflation. But the risk of a severe global slowdown is greater when energy is expensive, and few outside of OPEC, Big Oil and the guy selling home insulation ever gained a lick from rising energy costs...