University Professor Moshe Vardi condemns the actions taken by the U.S. government to restrict the immigration of technical workers into the country but also questions why the U.S. has become so dependent on international students as the major workforce for its academic science and engineering research enterprise. Baker Institute Blog: https://bit.ly/3llmHg2
Mark Finley, fellow in energy and global oil, examines cost reduction, capital climate, productivity gains and decline rates as reasons why the U.S. shale industry may struggle to maintain its competitiveness in 2020. Baker Institute Blog: https://bit.ly/3lAyB6R
Saudi Arabia’s newfound willingness to take a stand against oil quota cheats has forced the rest of OPEC+ to adhere to their quotas. Will today’s discipline – driven by the biggest-ever plunge in oil demand – fade alongside the virus? Read more in the Baker Institute Blog.
A social safety net in the form of unemployment benefits, job training, etc. can help cushion the blow for workers when economic events beyond their control (like the Covid-19 pandemic) cause companies to shed workers, writes Mark Finley, fellow in energy and global oil.
Leveraging a crash in oil revenue, the Saudi government has quickly imposed unprecedented changes to the way it raises cash by increasing taxes and slashing subsidies in ways Saudi citizens once considered unthinkable.
As oil prices start to recover, analysts are cautiously beginning to ask whether we’ve turned a corner — but for the weeks ahead, continued inventory builds pose significant risks of renewed price declines.
Energy fellow Mark Finley argues that the best way to support the U.S. oil and gas industry is to promote open and fair competition, even though conventional resources are cheaper to produce in Saudi Arabia and Russia. Forbes blog: https://bit.ly/2wWB3jz
Despite the Trump administration sentiment that the U.S. partner with Saudi Arabia in a joint oil alliance, such an approach is unlikely to be successful, write energy fellows Jim Krane and Mark Finley. Forbes blog: https://bit.ly/2WUa6rb
"With the U.S. and Iran staggering toward war, it bears asking: How would U.S. interests be served by war with Iran?" writes fellow Jim Krane. Read his argument for why U.S. interests would be deeply undermined by any such war on the Baker Institute Blog.
This post originally appeared in the Forbes Blog on June 17, 2019.
Saudi Arabia recently ended its legal ban on women driving. The long-term consequences of this change on transportation, energy, labor, and health remain unclear, write fellows Farhan Majid and Jim Krane in an op-ed for the Houston Chronicle: https://bit.ly/2Lrqnja