Stephanie Findley

The US oil majors have decided not to deviate from their pre-war plans because they are focused on capital discipline.

So this is a recurring theme in the sector after boom and bust cycles and, more recently, a wave of consolidation.

So we're seeing companies are focused on being efficient and having healthy balance sheets over chasing higher prices that may fall just as fast as they rose.

Additionally, and I think we've talked about this before, it's not easy to ramp up production.

Fracking requires a large amount of investment per well and complex coordination to bring in all the necessary equipment and crews to get it done.

So it's not something you can just turn on and off like a light switch.

In a reflection of this caution and discipline, Chevron chief executive Mike Worth said on the earnings call that with so much uncertainty out there for now, it's really steady as she goes.

And that was his words.

Let's say there was a light switch you could turn on and off and up production by millions of barrels.

It would take months to get the rigs up and running, and then it would need to be refined.

And U.S.

refiners are already running at capacity.

But administration can ask to boost supply, but it's obviously not so simple.

Almost 50% of the retail price of gasoline is made up of crude oil, which means a change in the price of oil reflects in the price at the pump.

And the price of oil is traded on global markets, which has risen due to the supply shock from the Iran war.

U.S.

production adds significant supply to global markets, but it can't compensate for the shortfall caused by the disruption in the Middle East.

My colleagues have a story on the U.S.

suffering the sharpest fuel price shock in the G7.

It's a real pain point for Americans as the conflict drags on.