Middle East Unrest will not prompt oil price to rise

BANGKOK, 21 March 2011 (NNT)-Mr. Thanawat Polwichai, the Director of the Economic and Business Forecasting Centre at the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce has revealed that the UN attacks in Libya will not send the price of crude oil above 120 US dollars per barrel but will bring peace to the country.

According to Mr. Thanawat, despite the attacks in the war-torn nation led by Britain, France and the United States forces, the situation is expected to improve over time. The United Nations’ mission was aimed at bringing peace to Libya and protecting refineries as Libya is among important oil exporters to Europe.

The unrest in Libya has prompted the decline in oil production from 1.6 million barrels to 800,000 barrels per day. Mr. Thanawat added that the world was more concerned with the situation in Saudi Arabia as one of the world’s biggest oil producers. Saudi Arabia is currently serving as an alternative source of fuel for several countries since the production capacity in Libya has declined significantly.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanich expressed his concerns over the oil prices in Thailand while the unrest continued in the Middle East. However, he added that this would be short lived and promised to maintain the price of diesel at no more than 30 baht per liter.