ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

World oil market chronology from 2003

In 2003, oil prices around the world began to go up. This was because many countries, especially the biggest oil-producing countries, were using more oil than they were producing. This caused a shortage of oil, so the price went up. At the same time, the demand for oil was increasing, as more and more countries began using it for energy and other uses.

The price of oil kept climbing until 2008, when a financial crisis in the United States caused oil demand to decrease and prices to fall. Over the next few years, prices stayed relatively low, as the economy was still struggling.

In 2011, oil prices began to rise again, this time because of political unrest in the Middle East and North Africa. Tensions across the region caused many countries to turn to oil as a way to boost their economies, which led to an increase in demand for oil and prices began to go back up.

In 2014, a new problem emerged when many countries began producing more oil than they had before, which lead to a glut of oil on the market. This caused the price of oil to fall again.

Since then, oil prices have fluctuated based on many different factors, including economic growth, changes in demand, and supply disruption caused by natural disasters or political unrest.