The “day of rage” in Saudi Arabia will take place today, Monday, March 7th, instead of Friday. The organizers of demonstrations in the Saudi Kingdom have decided not to wait and to take to the streets in many Saudi cities – not only in the Shiite areas around the Persian gulf, but also in major cities such as Medina, Jeddah, Hijaz and Taif.
Also the Saudi capital Riyadh is expected to see protests. More factors in Saudi Arabia call for a change of regime. Some want a constitutional monarchy, other want an even more religious regime and some just want to get a job. Despite the huge oil revenues, young people in Saudi Arabia cannot find a job. The unemployment rate is very high there.
And regarding the Shiites in the east – while they are only 15% of the population, they live in areas such as Qatif, which are rich in oil. The Shiite protests in Bahrain and the proximity to Iran sent them to the streets, for already two weeks.
But as the youngsters in central cities on the red see and in Riyadh join, the potential is of a much higher magnitude. The protests are expected to start Monday, March 7th and to last for days, reaching a peak on Friday, March 11th, after prayers. Will oil peak as well?
Oil prices opened the trading week significantly higher – WTI Crude oil already jumped to $106 from $104 on Friday. Brent oil is almost at $120. USD/CAD is hovering over 0.97, but we might soon replace it for CADUSD…
Further reading:
- Saudi Day of Rage Pushes Oil Prices Higher – The past Friday, March 4th, already saw serious demonstrations in Saudi Arabia, as well as Jordan, Yemen, Iran and other countries. The Saudi demonstrations focused on the oil rich city near the gulf. It’s different now…
- Ras Lanuf Battles Boost Oil Prices – Battles in the Libyan city of Ras Lanuf are also critical to oil prices. The civil war might disable export of oil from this port, which normally sends out 200,000 oil barrels.
- Gaddafi to Zimbabwe – There were talks that Libya’s ruler, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi is will leave to Zimbabwe. His friend Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe is awaiting him in Harare.
Update: There are reports that Gaddafi has offered to resign and leave the country if his safety is guaranteed, and if he doesn’t face a trial in International Criminal Court.
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