Cut in British oil price could start price war

Britain will start an oil price war if it cuts its price below $30 a barrel, the Middle East Economic Survey said. And the resulting plunge in world prices could wipe out the economics of North Sea oil, which is much more expensive to extract than Mideast crude, the publication said. But it added that if Britain holds its price at $30 or above, an Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries price agreement hammered out last week could stabilize the market. Britain has proposed to reduce its price per barrel to $30.50, but faces pressure to reduce further in the glutted market.