The Effect of US Shale Oil Production on Local and International Oil Markets

Abstract

US shale oil has created dramatic changes in international oil markets. The United States became the world's biggest producer of crude oil after it overtook Saudi Arabia and Russia and then returned to exporting crude oil after a stop that lasted more than four decades. Its imports of crude oil decreased significantly. US shale oil had a remarkable impact on the structure of international crude oil trade; Other producers, including OPEC, were affected by the decline in their shares in the global oil market and the decline in their financial revenues. Technological development has played an essential role in the success of US shale oil by reducing costs and increasing economic feasibility. Therefore, US shale oil is no longer highly sensitive to lower oil prices, as it was before. Furthermore, the continuous increase in crude oil prices from $24.4 per barrel in 2001 to $97 and $111.6 in 2008 and 2012, respectively, was enough to make shale oil production economically profitable. Now, the United States plays an essential role in the global oil market, as the largest consumer and producer and, behind China, the second largest importer. Shale oil is expected to play a growing role in the US oil sector and the global oil industry in the future.