World Oil Prices Collapse Canada's most valuable export commodity is mineral fuels, which includes oil. Mineral fuels is one of the largest contributors to the national economy. To say oil is an important commodity to Canadians is an understatement. Low oil prices are not good for oil-producing countries like Canada. What caused the price of oil to crash in 2020? An Increasing Supply of Oil Before the COVID-19 pandemic, world oil production was increasing. The United States was pumping out a record amount of oil. The proposed deal of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cut oil production among its members failed. At the same time, the Russia-Saudi Arabia price war escalated, contributing to an increase in the world supply of oil. Over the past several years, oil sands production in Canada had also been increasing. When oil storage facilities in North America reached near capacity, producers reverted to storing excess oil at sea in oil tankers. The opposition and delay to constructing new pipelines added to the excess oil supply and storage problem. As a result of these situations, Canadian oil producers had few options to store their excess oil A Decreasing Demand for Oil The world demand for oil decreased by an estimated 30 percent during the COVID-19 pandemic. This drastic decrease was a result of numerous events. The lockdowns forced many employees to work from home and everyone to stay at home. Travel bans, both personal and business, grounded airplanes. Industries that rely on oil as an input reduced their demand because of a decline in business production and business shutdowns. For Critical Thinking Identify two key factors noted in the Issues and Applications that could contribute to an increase in demand for oil. Identify two factors noted in the Issues and Applications that could impact the supply of oil