Title: The oil market | Oil prices | Economics Online | Economics Online
Headings: 
The oil market
Current oil price
The demand for oil
World’s major oil consumers
Major oil producers
US strategic oil reserves
Recent petrol prices
The effects of the global downturn
Oil prices and petrol pump prices
Energy production
Business Economics
Explaining The K-Shaped Economic Recovery from Covid-19
Does Public Choice Theory Affect Economic Output?
Largest Retail Bankruptcies Caused By 2020 Pandemic
Identifying Speculative Bubbles and Its Effect on Markets
Explaining The Disconnect Between The Economy and The Stock Market
Consumer Confidence Compared to Q2 Job Growth
Global Affairs
Alternatives to GDP in Measuring Countries
Multiplier Effect

Content: The main factors contributing to the general rise in crude oil prices over recent years are: Rising world demand, especially from China
Cost shocks, such as the War in Iraq and hurricane Katrina (2005)
The effects of the global downturn
However, during 2008 the price of a barrel of oil fell back from its record high. This was the result of the downturn in world demand for oil, especially from China, as the global recession began to spread. Oil prices and petrol pump prices
An increase or decrease in crude oil prices may not affect prices at the petrol pumps. There are a few reasons for this: There may already be existing stocks of petrol at the old prices. The cost of refined petroleum represents only around 22% of the retail price of petrol. ( Source: UK Petrol Industry Association, 2009)
In many countries, the retail market has become increasingly competitive in recent years. This is certainly true in the UK, with the entry of the large supermarket chains, such as Tesco and Sainsbury, into petrol retailing in the early 1990s.