Mideast revolution will spread, violence won't - oil exec.

libya_violence.gi.top.jpgKuwait Energy exec. says revolution will spread across Middle East but violence won't and that oil supplies are safe; urges U.S. to stay on sidelines. By Steve Hargreaves, senior writer


HOUSTON (CNNMoney) -- Revolutions calling for democracy, transparency, and employment will eventually engulf the entire Middle East, the head of the Kuwait Energy Company said Tuesday.

But the oil executive said that the violence that has marked some protests and thrown Libya into a full-scale civil war should be isolated; oil supplies will remain safe; and that the United States should stay out of the way.

"All the Arab countries are uprising," Sara Akbar, chief executive of privately-held Kuwait Energy, said at IHS CERA's annual energy conference. "The spark is very contagious, and everyone is getting it."

But while Libya has descended into civil war and Yemen may split up, she said Saudi Arabia's ruler, King Abdulhah, should be able to placate his people with reforms before the discontent turns violent.

Moreover, a transition in the Middle East, while it might be years in the making, will be beneficial for everyone involved as corruption is rooted out and the economies can expand, she said.

"This is a big positive step for the future," Akbar said. "Everyone is very happy."

Oil prices have rallied over 10% in the last month, mostly due to fear that the growing violence in the Middle East will spread to other major oil producing countries like Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, and, especially, Saudi Arabia.

Akbar noted her company continued producing oil in Egypt during the uprising there and also in Yemen when that country went through a decade of civil war.

"No matter what regime it is, they want the production to continue," she said.

Her enthusiasm for relative stability in Saudi Arabia was generally shared by others on the panel.

"I think the proposed protests on Friday are going to be a non-event," said Brad Bourland, chief economist at Jadwa Investment, referring to the 'day of rage" protests slated to take place later this week in the desert kingdom.

Bourland noted the Saudi stock market is up 14% this week, a sign investors are betting the country will remain strong.

President Obama has been criticized by some conservatives for not taking a more active role in the Middle East during the current protests, but nearly everyone on the panel thought that doing so would be a bad idea.

"The people on the ground will say 'oh, this is just the U.S. interfering again,"" said Akbar. "People in the Middle East are very conspiracy-theory minded."

If any outside intervention is done to topple Libya's Moammar Gadhafi, whom Akbar called "a total moron," it should be done by the United Nations, she said.

Other panelists agreed.

"Any U.S. intervention would be very unwelcome," said James Placke, an analyst at IHS CERA and a former diplomat in the Middle East. "That's a point I hope Washington will grasp." To top of page

Just the hot list include
Frontline troops push for solar energy
The U.S. Marines are testing renewable energy technologies like solar to reduce costs and casualties associated with fossil fuels. Play
25 Best Places to find rich singles
Looking for Mr. or Ms. Moneybags? Hunt down the perfect mate in these wealthy cities, which are brimming with unattached professionals. More
Fun festivals: Twins to mustard to pirates!
You'll see double in Twinsburg, Ohio, and Ketchup lovers should beware in Middleton, WI. Here's some of the best and strangest town festivals. Play
Overnight Avg Rate Latest Change Last Week
30 yr fixed3.80%3.88%
15 yr fixed3.20%3.23%
5/1 ARM3.84%3.88%
30 yr refi3.82%3.93%
15 yr refi3.20%3.23%
Rate data provided
by Bankrate.com
View rates in your area
 
Find personalized rates:
Index Last Change % Change
Dow 32,627.97 -234.33 -0.71%
Nasdaq 13,215.24 99.07 0.76%
S&P 500 3,913.10 -2.36 -0.06%
Treasuries 1.73 0.00 0.12%
Data as of 6:29am ET
Company Price Change % Change
Ford Motor Co 8.29 0.05 0.61%
Advanced Micro Devic... 54.59 0.70 1.30%
Cisco Systems Inc 47.49 -2.44 -4.89%
General Electric Co 13.00 -0.16 -1.22%
Kraft Heinz Co 27.84 -2.20 -7.32%
Data as of 2:44pm ET
Sponsors

Sections

Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More

Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.