It is hard to appreciate the centrality of petroleum to the 21st-century economy, whether a developed nation or one that is developing. Consumers recognize it daily when they purchase gas or nervously eye the climbing price when they pass gas stations. Its use is far more wide-ranging however; it is essential to goods such as fertilizer, and subsequently food and plastic, which wraps just about everything on store shelves.
That ubiquity means that the conflict with Iran is having a profound impact on economies around the world, testing the resilience and policy making of governments. Prices are climbing and production is scaling back. Smart, sustained and coordinated action is needed to combat these pressures. Ultimately, geopolitical shifts are demanded.
This week the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the club of advanced industrial nations, released its updated forecast for the global economy, Predictably, its economists had to adjust the predictions made just a few months ago.
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