Saudi Arabia has turned its oil market fortunes around over the past 1 ½ years. From facing potential financial collapse due to a historic supply overhang of crude on the back of U.S. shale oil production and Riyadh’s late 2014 decision to turn on the oil production spigot to flood markets, retain market share and drive prices to the ground to force non-OPEC, mostly U.S. producers, out of business, the OPEC de facto leader cleverly formed a new partnership with Russia to get its oil market swagger back. In essence, what the Saudis and a collective OPEC for that part could not do, it overwhelmingly achieved with Russian and non-OPEC help. OECD oil inventory levels dipped to five year averages recently, oil prices have reached multi-year highs and the Saudis are back where they are most comfortable, seemingly in the business of calling the shots in global oil markets, […]