Is oil price heading north?

[Juju Mathew + 3]

We have been seeing a slow and steady rise in oil prices without much of external factors. How sustainable is this price and for how long is something that would be interesting. Probably it will be in the best interest of the industry to start investment once again slowly and avoid another spike with demand overshooting supply. A spike probably may be good in short term, but will also accelerate the growth of alternative energy and switch over. Therefore probably for a sustainable price regime for a longer period, it is important to maintain the pricing around 60 to 70 (oil economists may be able to come up with a more accurate number) and we are on the border line there. Probably time for investors to look at this industry once again.

[Marina Schwarz + 1,576]

I just saw Barclays is predicting $51 a barrel this year, so nothing is certain.

[cathalibm + 4]

I was checking the web yesterday. Dono what newspaper site i was looking at but it said that oil would be hovering in the medium to long term between $60 + $70. It would benifit the big opec producers as it provides a steady stream of funds for them. It doesnt help countries such as Venezuela who were dependant on a high price to run their ecomany. Hence both countries are in economic turmoil. Venezula is in hyperinflation running at about 11000%.

[Rodent + 1,424]

6 hours ago, Juju Mathew said:

We have been seeing a slow and steady rise in oil prices without much of external factors. How sustainable is this price and for how long is something that would be interesting. Probably it will be in the best interest of the industry to start investment once again slowly and avoid another spike with demand overshooting supply. 

Analysts are all over the place with their predictions. I'll throw my humble hat in the ring too and say that investments will pick up and US production will continue its climb, and prices will be pressured despite OPEC's best efforts to offset the hike. US drillers are not going to coordinate any tempering of investments--they will throw caution to the wind as prices (and lowered costs, I suspect) dictate. Prices will stay relatively high throughout the summer, then will fall towards the later part of the year as inventories build. OPEC et al will continue the production cuts into 2019 because they will have no choice. It will eventually be the new norm.

I feel I have as good of a chance as anyone in guessing correctly where oil prices are headed--which is to say, a very very slim chance.