The Impact of President Reagan’s Sudden Decontrol of Petroleum Prices on Petroleum Consumption

Abstract

President Reagan lifted all petroleum price controls shortly after he took office. Previously, the Carter administration had scheduled these controls to be eliminated gradually, with complete decontrol occurring by October 1, 1981. It is of interest to determine the effect of the sudden decontrol on petroleum consumption; in order to measure this effect, the role played by price must be isolated.

Keywords

Oil Price controls Oil demand US

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