Several geopolitical events have made traders nervous and have impacted the low prices in recent weeks. The shooting down of the Russian jet, the continued tensions in the Middle East and the terror attacks in Cameroon, are all examples of the instability that can lead to higher fuel prices. The fact that terrorists in the Middle East could act to disrupt oil production or shipments is always a variable that could impact oil prices as well.
Saudi Arabia, and some other OPEC producers, can survive at the current price of a barrel of oil. That is not the case with other oil producers, who require a much higher price to make any profit.
OPEC is using this strategy to shut the non-OPEC producers out of the market. Oil production during the month of November was up over the previous month. OPEC was producing 31.77 million barrels a day in November.
Polling of analysts indicate that the consensus is that Brent crude prices will average $57.95 a barrel in 2016. That would be an increase from current prices and would signal some increase in the price at the pump. It is still a far cry from the $100 plus dollar prices we saw only a few years back.