Israel, the Arabs, and Oil Money

If you had as much money as you could spend and were given the option of more money or petroleum in the ground, which would you choose? Suppose, additionally, that the petroleum is in the ground under your own feet, while the money would have to be stored in potentially hostile banks. And even more, suppose you could be sure that by merely withholding petroleum until you again needed money you could cause its price to rise almost at will.

These hypotheses describe the reality facing certain Arab exporters, and the remaining question is, why are they selling oil at all? Why this futile accumulation of liquidity? They must be selling out of fear for their very exposed position, and out of hostility to Israel.

HC

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Herbert Cahn

If you had as much money as you could spend and were given the option of more money or petroleum in the ground, which would you choose? Suppose, additionally, that the petroleum is in the ground under your own feet, while the money would have to be stored in potentially hostile banks. And even more, suppose you could be sure that by merely withholding petroleum until you again needed money you could cause its price to rise almost at will.

These hypotheses describe the reality facing certain Arab exporters, and the remaining question is, why are they selling oil at all? Why this futile accumulation of liquidity? They must be selling out of fear for their very exposed position, and out of hostility to Israel.