Original Article on Business Insider

The New York Times' Tim Arango and Clifford Krauss team up this morning to report on Iraq's surging crude oil production and the dampening effect it should have on markets and gas prices. Calling the increased output "a singular bright spot for the nation's future," the pair reports there's beena 20 percent jump in exports this year to nearly 2.5 million barrels of oil a day, "making Iraq one of the premier producers in OPEC for the first time in decades." It will also serve as a counterweight once sanctions on Iran start to bite. "Energy analysts say that the Iraqi boom coupled with increased production in Saudi Arabia and the near total recovery of Libyas oil industry should cushion oil markets from price spikes and give the internati...(read more)