Oil shock

It is also called the oil shock or oil crisis. It is a major upheaval in the world economy caused by the oil strategies adopted by Arab oil-producing countries during the Yom Kippur War that broke out in October 1973 (Showa 48). When the Yom Kippur War began, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cut crude oil production, banned exports to the United States and the Netherlands, and quadrupled export prices. This caused not only crude oil prices but also petroleum product prices to skyrocket, causing chaos in the oil market. Since the Western economy after World War II had adopted a "resource-wasting economy" that consumed large amounts of low-cost oil, the Arab oil strategy shook the foundation of that economy, and the impact was particularly severe in Japan, which relied on imports for most of its oil. In November of the same year, the government requested general companies to reduce oil and electricity consumption by 20% and to conserve resources in the private sector, and recommended that "thrift is a virtue" to the public. In the midst of this, some companies bought up raw materials, withheld them from sale, and took advantage of the situation to raise prices, while some even intentionally promoted "shortages" as a "once in a lifetime opportunity." This caused panic among the public, leading to panic buying of paper, detergent, sugar, and other items, and the people suffered from "skyrocketing prices." The impact of the oil crisis was not limited to the economy, as the government, which had previously adopted a policy of supporting Israel, suddenly shifted to a pro-Arab Middle East policy in order to secure crude oil.

However, during this period, the supply of crude oil did not fall sharply. International oil companies secured crude oil through their own routes and supplied it to various countries, while at the same time drastically raising the supply price, earning exorbitant profits, and then passing on the rise in crude oil prices to product prices, again earning exorbitant profits. In other words, the "energy crisis" that was so much publicized during this period was, in the short term, also artificial. However, in the long term, it is clear that excessive oil extraction and waste will bring about a true "energy crisis," and it is the policies of Japan, in particular, that have destroyed the coal industry in the name of an "energy revolution," that will bring about a true "energy crisis."

The oil crisis destroyed the foundation of the postwar economy, the supply of low-cost crude oil, and put an end to rapid economic growth. Since then, the world economy has been moving into a period of low growth and prolonged recession. In addition, it has led to an increase in the political influence of Arab oil-producing countries and a decline in the status of the developed Western countries, especially the United States, creating a new situation for North-South conflict.

[Satoru Ito]

"Japan's Energy Problems" edited by Hirozumi Iwao (1974, Jiji Press)" ▽ "Modern Energy Crisis Theory" by Noriaki Sasaki (1978, Shin Nihon Shuppansha)" ▽ "The Age of New Mercantilism" by Hiromu Arakawa (Iwanami Shinsho)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

石油ショック、石油危機などともいう。1973年（昭和48）10月に勃発(ぼっぱつ)した第四次中東戦争においてアラブの石油産出諸国がとった石油戦略による世界経済の一大変動のこと。第四次中東戦争が始まると、アラブ石油輸出国機構（OAPEC(オアペック)）と石油輸出国機構（OPEC(オペック)）は原油生産削減とアメリカ、オランダ向け輸出の禁止、さらに輸出価格の4倍化を断行した。これにより原油価格のみならず石油製品価格も暴騰し、石油市場が混乱した。第二次世界大戦後の西側経済は低価格の石油を大量に消費する「資源浪費型経済」をとってきたので、こうしたアラブの石油戦略はその土台を揺るがすものであり、とくに石油の大半を輸入に頼ってきた日本において、その影響は重大であった。同年11月政府は一般企業への石油、電力20％削減と民間の資源節約を要請し、国民に対しては「節約は美徳」を提言した。このなかで一部企業は、原材料の買い占め、売り惜しみ、便乗値上げを行い、なかには「千載一遇の好機」として、意図的に「物不足」を宣伝するものも現れた。このため国民の間にパニックを引き起こし、紙、洗剤、砂糖などの買いだめ騒ぎが起こり、国民は「狂乱物価」に苦しんだ。オイル・ショックの影響は、単に経済面だけにとどまらず、従来イスラエル支持政策をとってきた政府は、急遽(きゅうきょ)、原油確保のために親アラブ的な中東政策へ転換した。

　しかしこの時期、原油供給量が大幅に落ち込んだわけではなかった。国際石油資本（メジャー）は独自のルートで原油を確保し各国に供給する一方、供給価格を大幅に引き上げて法外な利潤を獲得し、さらに原油価格の上昇を製品価格に転嫁し、ここでも法外な利潤を獲得したのであった。つまりこの時期に盛んに宣伝された「エネルギー危機」も、短期的にみれば、またつくられたものであった。しかし長期的にみれば、石油の乱掘、浪費が真の「エネルギー危機」をもたらすことは明らかであり、とくに日本のような、「エネルギー革命」の名の下に石炭産業を破壊してきた政策こそ、真の「エネルギー危機」を招くものである。

　オイル・ショックは、低価格の原油供給という戦後経済の基礎を崩壊させ、高度経済成長に終止符を打った。これ以降、世界経済は低成長、長期不況時代へ移行していく。それに加えてアラブ産油国の政治的発言力の増大と、アメリカを中心とする西側先進諸国の地位の低下をもたらし、新たな南北対立の状況をつくりだしたのである。

［伊藤　悟］

『岩尾裕純編『日本のエネルギー問題』（1974・時事通信社）』▽『佐々木憲昭著『現代エネルギー危機論』（1978・新日本出版社）』▽『荒川弘著『新重商主義の時代』（岩波新書）』

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