The price of oil is the most important value on international commodity markets since crude oil is the most important commodity. Emerging industrial markets such as China, India and Latin America greatly influence the price of oil, since they require more and more oil to support their economic growth and resulting rise in energy consumption. The supply of crude oil is limited, however, and cannot be increased further, since it has become increasingly difficult to find and develop new oil reserves in recent years. As a result, the price of oil has a strong influence on international economic development, since it is urgently needed in all industrialized countries when supplies are limited
