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The 1985-86 Oil Price Collapse and Afterwards: What Does Game Theory Add?

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  • Griffin, James M
  • Neilson, William S

Abstract

This paper focuses on the strategies used by OPEC to generate cartel profits over the period 1983-90. The evidence supports the hypothesis that OPEC adopted a swing producer strategy from 1983 to 1985. But when Saudi Arabia's profits fell below the level of Cournot profits in the summer of 1985, it abandoned the role of swing producer, driving prices to the Cournot level. Subsequently, Saudi Arabia appears to have adopted a tit-for-tat strategy designed to punish excessive cheating by other OPEC members. Based on these findings, the strengths and limitations of game theory are assessed. Copyright 1994 by Oxford University Press.

Suggested Citation

  • Griffin, James M & Neilson, William S, 1994. "The 1985-86 Oil Price Collapse and Afterwards: What Does Game Theory Add?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 32(4), pages 543-561, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:ecinqu:v:32:y:1994:i:4:p:543-61
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    Cited by:

    1. Dagoumas, Athanasios & Perifanis, Theodosios & Polemis, Michael, 2017. "An econometric model to assess the Saudi Arabia crude oil strategy," MPRA Paper 86283, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Kisswani, Khalid M. & Lahiani, Amine & Mefteh-Wali, Salma, 2022. "An analysis of OPEC oil production reaction to non-OPEC oil supply," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    3. Yang, Zili, 2008. "How Does ANWR Exploration Affect OPEC Behavior --A Simulation Study of an Open-loop Cournot-Nash Game," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 321-332, March.
    4. Alkhathlan, Khalid & Gately, Dermot & Javid, Muhammad, 2014. "Analysis of Saudi Arabia's behavior within OPEC and the world oil market," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 209-225.
    5. Razek, Noha H.A. & McQuinn, Brian, 2021. "Saudi Arabia's currency misalignment and international competitiveness, accounting for geopolitical risks and the super-contango oil market," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    6. Elbeck, Matt, 2010. "Advancing the design of a dynamic petro-dollar currency basket," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 1938-1945, April.
    7. Reynolds, Douglas B. & Pippenger, Michael K., 2010. "OPEC and Venezuelan oil production: Evidence against a cartel hypothesis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(10), pages 6045-6055, October.
    8. James M. Griffin, 2018. "The Saudi 2014 gambit: a counterfactual analysis," Mineral Economics, Springer;Raw Materials Group (RMG);Luleå University of Technology, vol. 31(1), pages 253-261, May.
    9. Kaushik Ranjan Bandyopadhyay, 2022. "Oil and Gas Markets and COVID-19: A Critical Rumination on Drivers, Triggers, and Volatility," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-21, April.
    10. Dibooglu, Sel & AlGudhea, Salim N., 2007. "All time cheaters versus cheaters in distress: An examination of cheating and oil prices in OPEC," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 292-310, September.
    11. Ansari, Dawud, 2017. "OPEC, Saudi Arabia, and the shale revolution: Insights from equilibrium modelling and oil politics," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 111, pages 166-178.
    12. Dagoumas, Athanasios & Perifanis, Theodosios & Polemis, Michael, 2018. "An econometric analysis of the Saudi Arabia's crude oil strategy," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 265-273.
    13. Durand-Lasserve, Olivier & Pierru, Axel, 2021. "Modeling world oil market questions: An economic perspective," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    14. Berk, Istemi & Çam, Eren, 2020. "The shift in global crude oil market structure: A model-based analysis of the period 2013–2017," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    15. Parnes, Dror, 2019. "Heterogeneous noncompliance with OPEC's oil production cuts," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 289-300.
    16. Loutia, Amine & Mellios, Constantin & Andriosopoulos, Kostas, 2016. "Do OPEC announcements influence oil prices?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 262-272.
    17. Berk, Istemi & Çam , Eren, 2019. "The Shift in Global Crude Oil Market Structure: A model-based analysis of the period 2013–2017," EWI Working Papers 2019-5, Energiewirtschaftliches Institut an der Universitaet zu Koeln (EWI).
    18. Lin, Boqiang & Omoju, Oluwasola E. & Okonkwo, Jennifer U., 2015. "Will disruptions in OPEC oil supply have permanent impact on the global oil market?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 1312-1321.

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