The largely unforeseen sharp fall in global oil prices and a broad-based weakness in commodity prices have propelled the declining trend in recent times. The decline is a result of changes in supply-and-demand dynamics, rather than speculative activity, which has been a determining factor in the past. Worldwide production of oil in excess of global consumption has emerged as the dominant driving force behind this downward trajectory, although weaker-than-expected growth in Europe and Asia has also been a contributing factor (Husain et al. No data available for Kiribati.