The Daily Biz

Crude oil hit $103 a barrel today, according to this CNNMoney aritcle.  Political unrest in Libya is causing the price to soar.  There are a few interesting points in the article that I’d like to highlight:

1. This week oil reached $100 a barrel for the first time since the dreaded 2008.  In this New York Times article an Edward Jones investment strategist commented that “we would have to see higher oil prices stay around for longer to have much serious impact [on the market]”.  However, when gas prices rose back in 2008 consumer spending dropped a whopping 3.5% according to this Yahoo News article.
2. I am interested in how the impact of Libya’s upheaval is magnified in the price increases.  Oil jumped 11.3% between February 14 and today, yet Libya produces less than 2% of the world’s oil.  It seems like fear might be trumping observable global impact!

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