Dateline: Tuesday November 20, 2007 at 14:25 from Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

The 100 Dollar Mark and the ER - Economic Responsibility!

With the price of oil generally speeding up like a bullet to stratospheric levels, it will be a certainty that the price of oil will top the US $100 per barrel in the very near future.

Although some financial analysts have recently called for investors to take profit from the surging prices of oil, it won’t be long before the price of oil will hit the 100 mark!

Call it a self-fulfilling prophecy, it will certainly rise to 100 because of calls by hedge funds of the probability of oil prices going above 100! Simply put, these funds are already hinting that the price of oil will spike and it’s a question of when, not if.

Equally held by them is the view that these three digit price per barrel is not sustainable for a variety of reasons.

While the term Corporate Social Responsibility (“CSR”) has been spoken of at great length in recent years, we seen to have only talked about this philosophy to a great extend. What is missing is the sustainable practice of doing the right things for the right reasons; it all starts with the motives behind the reasons.

The reality is that Economic Responsibility (“ER”) practices by the general capital market community is severely lacking.

From the sub-prime crisis in the USA to the rich divide between developed and developing nations, we don’t seem to have the propensity to learn from our mistakes. Perhaps it’s blindness that is preventing us from learning from the mistakes made.

Economic Responsibility (“ER”) is basically a call to do the right thing for the good of the economy in delivering its goods and services in an affordable and responsible manner to its children of the world so as to enrich and bless their lives.

Although the capital markets are responsible to deliver returns to investors, its responsibility is also extended to the manner in which it is done. There is nothing wrong with reporting record breaking after tax profit returns.

Financial modellers and economist can predict, in free market enterprise models, with a fair degree of probability the movement of prices, its possible societal consequences and its compounding effects on the global economy.

This would suggest that the capital market players are in a position of influence, and with the combined billions and the basic principle of demand and supply to bring about a state of perceived equilibrium; they would need to behave responsibly in the way the make and earn their money.

Capital market players need to exercise a fair degree of responsible behaviour and exude confidence to ensure that the bigger picture of global economic wealth is created responsibly and can be sustained.

The ability to sustain returns consistently to enrich the lives of the human race is paramount in bringing about the social economic harmony that we all need and crave for.

And that we can all do in an Economically Responsible way. Accountability in doing the right thing will create long term sustainable growth for countries of the world.

At least the CSR promise is made good.

So, will the price of oil hit and surpass the 100 US dollar mark? The question will be when and whether this is a responsible price level.

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