Obama admin consults oil experts as it weighs action against Syria!! Get ready for $5/gal!
By Timothy Gardner and Roberta Rampton
News.yahoo.com
Aug 30 2013
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Obama administration officials have contacted energy experts in recent days to discuss oil market conditions as the president weighs a military strike against Syria, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
There are no signs the government is preparing to tap emergency oil reserves soon in a bid to tame rising prices, according to the sources who spoke with Reuters this week, though the administration is closely monitoring the situation.
Fears about Syria’s civil war spilling over into other countries have helped propel international oil prices to their highest level in six months, rising more than $8 a barrel since the beginning of the month, and approaching a level that has slowed the global economy in the past.
That has spurred early market chatter about whether Obama might tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, or SPR, a 700 million barrel resource last used in 2011 after months of supply disruptions during the Arab Spring.
“I don’t think a use of the SPR is either imminent or being strongly considered at this time,” said one source who had spoken with administration officials as part of regular discussions with them about oil markets.
“It probably wouldn’t be unless the blowback from any strikes on Syria is more severe than anticipated,” the source said.
Oil analysts have said a quick strike against Syria could push prices up to $125 to $130 a barrel, with Societe Generale saying prices could reach $150 a barrel if the crisis were to spill over into larger oil producing countries.
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