Some of the world's biggest oil companies including BP, Statoil ASA, and Royal Dutch Shell Plc conspired with Morgan Stanley and energy traders including Vitol...

Some of the world's biggest oil companies including BP, Statoil ASA, and Royal Dutch Shell Plc conspired with Morgan Stanley and energy traders including Vitol Group to manipulate spot prices for Brent crude oil for more than a decade allege four longtime traders in the oil market. Over 85 pages, the plaintiffs describe how the market allegedly showed that the Brent spot price was artificially driven up or down by the defendants, depending on what would profit them most in swap, futures or spot markets. They allege the defendants used methods including spoofing - placing orders that move markets with the intention of cancelling them later. Since at least 2002, the suit's plaintiffs allege, Shell and London-based BP have had enough power in the market to manipulate price trends, an effect they allege was magnified and more disruptive when they used collusive market power in acting alongside the others. (VIEW LINK)