Overview

Oil is the world's most important commodity. It is also one of the most politicized, with national oil companies controlling most of the world's reserves. Contrary to conventional wisdom, Llewelyn Hughes shows that governments across the advanced industrial states responded to the politicization of oil in the 1970s by freeing prices, lowering barriers to trade, and privatizing national oil companies. How did this come about? And why do some governments continue to support domestic firms? In answering these questions, Hughes shows that the politicization of oil also led to a transformation in oil market governance by changing the balance of risk and opportunities facing firms. He also shows that their ability to benefit from this change was conditioned by previous attempts to shape the competitive landscape in their favor. Hughes' study has important implications not only for the politics of oil, but also for the study of economic liberalization.

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9781316633052

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Reviews

'Llewelyn Hughes has written a brilliant book about the transformation of the world's energy markets. In Globalizing Oil, Hughes demonstrates that the interplay of governments and firms in the global market for oil requires an understanding of both politics and strategy. With extraordinary research and compelling argument, Hughes' book provides insight into both.' Rawi E. Abdelal, Herbert F. Johnson Professor of International Management, Harvard Business School 'Globalizing Oil is an invaluable contribution to the literature on global governance of the petroleum industry. Not since Louis Turner's Oil Companies and the International System has such a monumental study been produced with the clarity and foresight on this vital issue. [Hughes'] comparative approach goes a long way in explaining critical domestic and foreign policy energy policy nuances that continue to influence the oil market to this day. A true tour de force!' Charles Ebinger, Senior Fellow and Director, Energy Security Initiative, The Brookings Institution, Washington DC 'Despite the tremendous importance of oil for advanced economies, we know little behind the politics that led to the liberalization of domestic markets. Hughes' ambitious and insightful analysis fills this gap. For anybody interested in understanding how business power and government choices mutually shape each other over time, his book will be a required reading.' Cornelia Woll, Sciences Po Paris

Author Information

Llewelyn Hughes is Assistant Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at George Washington University, Washington DC.

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