Every now and then, a few interesting quotes come along, which seem to recent summarise developments, and set the tone for the next few months. Recent days have been a good example of this process at work:
'The era of cheap energy is over, as oil production isn't rising fast enough to meet demand amid a lack of spending'. Tony Hayward, CEO, BP
'A public backlash against high (oil) prices in China could have an adverse impact throughout the world'. Zhang Guabao, China's delegate to the G8 Energy Ministers' meeting
'It is not clear if the rest of the world is going to continue to fund the US current account deficit at current levels of exchange rates'. Malcolm Knight GM, Bank of International Settlements (the central bankers bank)
'The banking system might simply revert to the role of a utility, which is the way things were before the great deregulatory tide began in the 1970's'. John Plender, senior financial columnist, Financial Times.