Navigating the highways of the global oil markets often means expecting the unexpected, and this time around, it’s motorists who might find themselves coasting into some unexpected savings. Energy analyst Paul Sankey shared his forecasts, and there’s an interesting twist in the tale of gasoline prices that entrepreneurs and investors might want to keep their eyes on.

You see, a little-known domino effect is starting to play out: Saudi Arabia’s production cuts have hoisted crude prices just a tad too high, and the aftermath? A surprising slide in demand. Both Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate oil, in response to weakening U.S. gasoline consumption, dipped by a stark 6% recently.

As Sankey puts it: “The gasoline crack has absolutely cratered, really remarkably,” signifying that the price divergence between crude and refined products paints a telling picture: Saudi Arabia might just have tipped the oil price scale a bit too much.

But here’s where things take a turn – while demand takes its foot off the gas, the supply side of things isn’t following suit.

You might wonder, “Could Saudi Arabia trim their production even more to balance out prices?” Sankey thinks not. He explains that the kingdom, already downsizing its output to 9 million barrels a day, won’t risk slicing further into its market share in the oil realm.

And on the home front, U.S. domestic oil production is maintaining its momentum. Factor in the additional supplies from sanctioned nations like Iran and Venezuela, and the supply equilibrium holds steady, perhaps even more robustly than the market has recognized.

Sankey notes, “All of those things haven’t really been appreciated by the market, but essentially it allows for much more oil supply from sanctioned nations.”

While yes, the oil markets could still be nudged this way or that by various elements – think occurrences like a recent Canadian pipeline outage or production tweaks by Russia – Sankey drops a nugget that’s sure to be of interest to drivers: lower wholesale prices are on the horizon as demand continues to decelerate.

His prediction: “You will see lower prices at the pump over the coming months.”

For the astute investor or entrepreneur, these shifts in the oil and gasoline markets merit close attention. From investment opportunities to business decision-making impacted by fuel costs, understanding these dynamics is key to steering through the fluctuating lanes of the global economy. So, let’s keep our eyes on the gauges as we navigate the roads of the forthcoming financial quarters!