By now everyone not living under a rock has heard the Doha talks have collapsed without a deal, but it is hard to overstate how surprising the outcome was to the world of energy analysts and market watchers. WTI and Brent prices are set to plunge on Monday, reflecting the failure of OPEC to reach a deal, as oil traders had largely baked in the production freeze deal into the price for crude. Oil prices had moved above $40 per barrel in recent weeks, about 50 percent higher than their low point in February when OPEC and Russia originally announced a preliminary agreement to freeze output. Since the Doha summit was put on the calendar several weeks ago, a production freeze looked all but certain. Even though there were murmurings about certain parties holding out – particularly the Saudis who vowed not to agree to a deal without the […]