The map of world oil flows is changing. It is not only the flows of crude oil that have been affected by surging US light tight oil production, but product flows are also undergoing significant change. Whether these trends will represent a transient shock or a secular change depends on policy decisions in North America, among other factors. These include the depth and persistence of the current global economic slowdown, the impact of the current low oil price environment on the US production outlook for light tight oil, and US and European regulatory interventions in oil price reporting and over-thecounter (OTC) oil derivative markets. The contours of structural change are still matters of debate, but the consequences of US light tight oil output will continue to reverberate across the global crude oil and refined product markets.
