Higher oil prices seem to have given OPEC the confidence that it needs to begin thinking about moving forward, and with Russia in the mix as well, it appears as though the alliance will be a force to be reckoned with.

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(Click to enlarge)

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– Gasoline prices averaged $2.92 per gallon for the week ending on May 21, and have surpassed $3 per gallon in regional markets.

– The prices are the highest for the Memorial Day weekend in four years.

– However, prices are likely to fall back soon with crude oil prices plunging over the past week.

OPEC decision demonstrates its clout

Despite all the ink spilled on the primacy of U.S. shale, the fact that oil prices crashed after news surfaced that OPEC and Russia are discussing adding some supply back onto the market demonstrates the cartel’s ongoing influence over global oil markets.

U.S. shale is adding enormous new volumes of supply, but shale companies have nowhere near the power that OPEC has to force sudden and sharp price changes on the market.

Oil prices fell more than 6 percent over two days since the news broke that OPEC and Russia could add as much as 800,000 bpd back onto the market in the second half of this year.