James West at Mother Jones with an informative roundup of what effects the Iraqi crisis will have on the U.S. oil market. Click here for the full details:
As deadly sectarian violence continues to sweep through Iraq, the country's oil industry is reeling from a brazen attack on one of its key domestic refineries. Here are five things you need to know about the role of oil in the current conflict, and what it means for the US and the global economy.
- Oil infrastructure is a major flashpoint in the Iraq crisis.
- The Iraq crisis is already affecting oil and gasoline prices.
- But long-term impacts on global oil supply are unlikely, unless the insurgency spreads.
- America imports much less Iraqi oil than it used to.
- But the US is still tied to global oil markets, and that means what happens in Iraq can have an economic impact here.
