Oil supply and demand

During 1998, the price of oil continued to fall. In the autumn of 1997, the barrel of Brent was worth about $20 but then its price dropped to $10 during the last months of 1998. Early in 1997, market-watchers began to think that a downturn was possible, but it occurred on a scale that caught operators by surprise. It is always difficult to predict short- and medium-term prices or, in this case, to determine whether current prices, generally considered to be low, are here to stay