> Wall Street Journal - January 30, 2007
> Saudis to Pare Oil Output Again
>
> Amid Market Uncertainty,
> OPEC Leader to Remove
> 158,000 Barrels a Day
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The NYT article posted earlier by Yoshie reported that "several European
officials said in interviews that they believe that the United States and
Saudi Arabia have an unwritten deal to keep oil production up, and prices
down, to further squeeze Iran, which is dependent on oil for its economic
solvency."
The Journal article supports the other interpretation: that the motivation has been primarily economic rather than political - to bring to oil price down to $50-$55 in order to discourage the development of alternative energy supplies.