Summary: On today's special episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker looks at the world oil market's rebound to nearly $50 a barrel. After dropping by more than 80% in two years oil prices are rebounding. This episode examines Saudi Arabia's economic and geo-strategic strategies and its deliberate plans to keep oil prices low, drive out shale producers, and harm Iran. He examines the impact of low oil prices on Venezuela and the underlying problems facing Latin America's largest oil producer.<br><br>He is joined for the full hour by Ed Hirs, a lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Houston as well as Managing Director for Hillhouse Resources, LLC, and Zafar Bangash, the Director of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought and author of the book “The Doomed Kingdom of the House of Saud”. <br><br>They discuss the oil bust of 2014 and why the Saudi monarchy and its allies decided that they would break with economic orthodoxy and keep pumping oil. What does the end of the oil bust mean for the Saudis and their geopolitical interests?
