“how long they can go before they feel the squeeze? There has to be a pain point eventually. Nations have bills to pay.”
The Saudi’s have lots of cash, LOTS of gold, and AAA+++ credit. They can take it.
THIS IS ALL ABOUT ISIS, and bankrupting their ability to make money, which is by selling Oil. ISIS is a dagger pointed straight at Mecca, and the Saudi Royal Family, and they know it.
A couple of months ago the Saudis suggested they were OK with oil prices around $80, for a year or two. Current price is about 25% below that number so if you apply that percentage to their projected timeframe, you get 9 months to 1.5 years. So its reasonable to assume it would be even less given a further price drop down to $50.
That said they clearly see ISIS as an existential threat so maybe they’re willing to extend this game a little more. The Saudis are well heeled, and they’d like to stay that way. So its not an open ended game for them.