Caymen Net News – As the price of oil gets closer to US$100 a barrel, experts are suggesting that management of certain types of offshore funds may have caused some of the recent price increases.
With dire warnings last week that oil prices breaking US$100 barrier could trigger a massive recession in the US economy, with a serious knock on effect in the Cayman Islands, some of this week’s dramatic rise in the cost of oil are now being blamed on factors other than global politics.
Traditionally, rises in oil prices have been blamed on threats to future supplies. In recent cases, prices rose following suspension of output by Mexico’s state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, then fell when it became evident the problem should only be temporary.
The latest round of increase was apparently triggered by terrorist attacks in Afghanistan and Yemen, with observers saying that any hint of increasing tension in the Middle East automatically triggers oil price rises.
However, behind the high profile causes of rises in the cost of oil, there is increasing concern that managers of a variety of investment funds, including many of the hedge funds based in Grand Cayman, may be adding to the problem.
