One way to gauge support for the price of oil is to calculate the breakeven price. In other words, what is the dollar amount per barrel that would be required for an oil-producing country to balance its fiscal budget?

Several factors go into this calculation such as the location (and quality) of a country’s reserves, and the spending habits of the federal government.

Analysts at Carnegie Investment Bank recently put together this chart, which illustrates the breakeven price needed for some of the world’s largest oil producers. Combined, these countries are expected to produce 30 percent of the world’s oil in 2011, Carnegie says. Note: these prices are for Brent crude, which have been $10-to-$15 per barrel above West Texas Intermediate prices this year.

Russia, which is currently the world’s largest oil producer, has leaned on the profits of the natural gas and crude oil exports to account for nearly 14 percent of the country’s GDP in 2010. But Russia isn’t the only export-dependent country. Many countries in the Middle East, such as Saudi Arabia and Iran, have used oil profits to ease “Arab Spring” tensions by financing public programs.

However, Carnegie notes that the fiscal budgets of many oil-exporting countries were rising prior to the citizen revolution due to a lack of non-oil revenues, rapid population growth and generous welfare systems. For example, Saudi Arabia, which generates 80 percent of its government revenue from the petroleum sector, has increased government spending roughly 54 percent since 2008. Other countries such as the UAE (up 48 percent), Bahrain (up 53 percent) and Qatar (up 59 percent) have seen government spending increase over the same time period.

Carnegie says the result is, “OPEC countries have stronger incentives to defend higher oil prices, i.e. any drop in the oil price could mean lower OPEC production in order to try to secure higher oil prices.” It also means these countries are “less likely to invest in building additional production capacity.”

This only adds to our argument that we could see oil prices continue at their current levels despite a weaker global economy and softening demand for oil.

All opinions expressed and data provided are subject to change without notice. Some of these opinions may not be appropriate to every investor.

With rising wealth in emerging markets in recent years, people in China, India and Brazil have quickly acquired a taste for mobile phone and Internet technology. The industry in developing countries is in its infancy but growth has been swift. Below are seven surprising facts about this fast-growing emerging market trend:

1. Only 35 percent of the world’s population uses the Internet today. Yet, of those on the Web, the majority currently lives in a developing country.

2. China has the largest number of Internet users—485 million to be exact—but this is only one-third of the country’s population. After the U.S., India comes in third with 100 million users, but this is less than 10 percent of its population. Brazil holds the number five position with nearly 76 million users—only one-third of its population.

3. The adoption of smartphones is expected to grow rapidly in emerging markets. According to Bloomberg News, within a four-month timeframe, five million Chinese bought Apple’s iPhone 4 from China Mobile. The company plans to have 1 million new Wi-Fi hotspots across China over the next three years, says Bloomberg, so the consumer can surf the Web via Wi-Fi without having 3G access.

4. Ninety-seven percent of all households in the Republic of Korea can connect to the Internet. The country also has the highest mobile-broadband penetration worldwide. United Nations specialized agency ITU says that implementing policies have made the Republic of Korea an “IT powerhouse.”

5. The U.S. isn’t the only fan of Facebook. Although Americans overwhelmingly make up the majority of Facebook users, Indonesia has the second-highest number of members, with 40 million accounts. India, Turkey, Brazil and Mexico have more than 30 million members each, according to CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets Research data.

6. In addition to keeping the world connected to friends and family, the Internet is also a driver of economic growth. Through e-commerce, almost $8 trillion exchange hands each year, says McKinsey Global Institute in its new report on the impact of the Internet. McKinsey says the Internet has made a significant contribution to world GDP growth. Over the past five years, if you combine advanced economies and China, India and Brazil, the Internet has contributed to 11 percent of GDP growth.

7. The Internet has also played a huge role in the Middle East protests. Read a previous post where we ask if the Internet is the Land of the Free?

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Yesterday we discussed how the landscape of gold mine production has changed over the past 40 years. (Read “South Africa’s Incredibly Shrinking Gold Production” now.) Today, we focus on the other half of the economic model—gold demand’s big shift from the West to the East.

In 1970, according to the latest World Gold Council (WGC) report, half of the world’s gold was purchased in two regions—North America and Europe. Ten years later, that figure jumped all the way to 68 percent during a period of high inflation, a weak economy and spiking gold prices. At the same time, China and India (broadly represented in the chart as East Asia and Indian Sub continent) saw their combined share of gold demand diminish from 35 percent to 15 percent.

Since 1980, there’s been a slow transition in demand, with the Asian tiger clawing its way back. In 1990, East Asia and the Indian Sub continent demanded 40 percent of the world’s total gold; by 2000, demand rose to about 50 percent, and today, the two areas devour roughly 68 percent of the world’s gold.

Jewelry has been a major driver of the shift from west to east, says the WGC as the countries in the east spend their rising discretionary income on gold purchases. The WGC anticipates this level of demand will remain strong in the East, given the ongoing trend of urbanization, rise of the middle class and high savings rates in India and China.

Read more about gold demand in this part of the world in 3 Drivers, 2 Months, 1 Gold Rally?

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All opinions expressed and data provided are subject to change without notice. Some of these opinions may not be appropriate to every investor.