Episode 125: 1960 - OPEC - the emergence of a national oil cartel

On September 14, 1960, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, and Kuwait officially formed OPEC to ensure that oil-producing nations, rather than private companies, had the power to stabilize international oil prices. The cartel really flexed its muscle when the global economy was brought to its knees during the 1973 Oil Embargo on the US and its allies.