UAE oil minister: “We are working on expanding our capacity. We hope to get up to 3.5 million bpd by 2010-2012,” Hamli said, adding the UAE was currently pumping about 2.5 million barrels per day.

If you live here, just try to imagine what life will be like if the UAE does increase its production by nearly 50% within 5 years. How much of the additional revenue be spent locally and how much will be invested abroad?

The boom continues, unabated.

UPDATE: No doubt that there will be some event some where some time in the next few years that will knock down growth in demand for oil. And oil ministers are therefore right to be cautious about how much to invest in capacity to produce, refine and deliver. But the seeds of that sort of "correction" are not planted in the oil market itself.

Doubtful that robust demand for oil will continue? Consider:

1. The boom economies of India and China show no signs of falling off the cliff. I see a fissure to fall in, let me know.

2. The unstoppable US economy.

3. "Gasoline remains a spectacular value for the American middle class." Large numbers of Americans will not be running away from their affair with the family car just because of persistently high oil prices.