OnPoint Subscriber Exclusive
Longer Reads provide in-depth analysis of the ideas and forces shaping politics, economics, international affairs, and more.
The Decline and Fall of the Petrodollar?
Although Saudi Arabia has been pricing its oil exports in US dollars for decades, there has been recent speculation that the country's leaders may be considering a change. What would that mean for US financial and monetary hegemony?
GENEVA – Could changes to the longstanding “petrodollar” system undermine the greenback’s global dominance? For a half-century, the United States has sold advanced weaponry to Saudi Arabia, and the Kingdom has denominated its oil sales in dollars. But now that Saudi Arabia is openly considering pricing oil sales in other currencies, rumors are afoot that this arrangement could unravel.