The U.S. is producing more oil than ever, but when it comes to pulling the strings of the market, Saudi Arabia is still king. Oil is flowing from shale fields at a record pace, propelling U.S. output to roughly double in a decade. That remarkable growth had led some observers to pronounce the U.S. the new swing producer in the market—a mantle long held by Saudi Arabia. Yet with prices rising to their highest levels since 2014, the Kingdom still holds the power to single-handedly respond much more quickly than hundreds of private companies spread from Texas to North Dakota. In the latest sign of Saudi Arabia’s sway, energy minister Khalid al-Falih said Friday that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies are likely to open the taps to address rising prices after their production-cutting pact and threats to supplies from Venezuela and Iran helped push […]