Fabian: Correct me if I'm wrong - You're saying that the determination of the price of oil is procyclical; determined by OPEC during throughs and by US wells during booms. If this is the case how can this be reconciled with the standard interpretation of Marx's theory of rent that the price of oil (or agriculture goods) is ALWAYS determined by the high cost producer (least productive land)?
Over the last 15 years or so, the price of oil has varied from under $10 to over $30. It may be that the Ricardian/Marxian mechanisms you and Bina point to determine the center of gravity around which the market price fluctuates, but what accounts for this 300%+ range?
Doug
