[nickcarraway]

It costs Saudis $10/barrel to get it out of the ground. But the fiscal break even of their government budget is supposedly $84, meaning, beyond what it costs to get out of the ground, the Saudis have already account for $74. The Russians cost of getting it out of the ground is higher, but they claim their fiscal break even is $42.

So it may be cheaper for Saudis to get the product, but that's not entirely the number that's important.

In some ways, we are better positioned to tolerate the vagaries of the market then they are.

Oil is and always has been volatile. Those that forget that do so at their own risk. Oil was over $120/b in 1980 and it was over $150/b in 2008. It was about $10/b in 1986 and $11/b in 1998.

[NorseViking]

Oil producing countries might halve their fiscal breaks by devaluing their currencies.