Markets don’t like uncertainty, so it wasn’t a huge surprise that oil prices initially dropped by 5% in the wake of the UK’s unexpected vote last week to leave the European Union. One impact of the vote was a substantial strengthening of the dollar against many other currencies. Because the majority of the world’s oil trade is conducted in dollars, countries that have seen the dollar strengthen against their currencies will find that oil has become more expensive. That could potentially curb demand, and hence lower prices. But would the departure of the UK from the EU have a longer-term impact on the oil market? The UK has the world’s 5th-largest economy based on its GDP, and is second in the EU behind Germany. In 2015 the UK consumed 1.56 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil, which ranked it 14th among all countries for oil consumption, and third […]