Throwing Light on High Oil Prices and 'Dark Markets' (2/2)

慢速VOA,听写,英语,VOA ,经济,油价

Futures markets now largely set the price of oil. Yet these contracts rarely involve an exchange of real barrels of oil. Most oil is traded on what is called the spot market or through other contracts between producers and users. The prices, however, are usually based on futures prices.

Doug MacIntyre is senior oil analyst with the United States Energy Information Administration. He notes that the position of the government is that market forces of supply and demand are driving today's high oil prices. But he also notes that more money has been going into futures.

This money can be from oil producers and users. But it also comes from banks, big investors called hedge funds and speculators with no need for oil. Speculators try to guess the direction a market will go; in some cases they profit when prices drop.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and others say it is not clear that speculators are to blame for high oil prices. They say markets need buyers and sellers willing to take more risk than average investors. But critics say oil prices have gone up too quickly recently to be explained by supply and demand alone.

慢速VOA,听写,英语,VOA ,经济,油价慢速VOA,听写,英语,VOA ,经济,油价