Oil Price

The price of oil touched $100 today.

The new record is being accompanied by all kinds of analysis and comments relating this new record to developments in the US economy.

But, US real oil imports, including both crude and refined products have been flat to down since early in the decade.


Looking at it from the OPEC and other international suppliers of oil, US imports represent US oil demand. This chart clearly shows that the run up in oil prices to $100 had little or nothing to do with demand from the US. The rise in oil prices is being driven by demand from the rest of the world like China and India.