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(Wall Street Journal) Oil prices have slumped to 12-year lows , shocking even the most bearish forecasters. But back in February 2004, the last time the U.S. benchmark settled below $33.50 a barrel, oil at these prices was considered pricey.

In 2004, U.S. oil production was falling, and political conflict and instability in Venezuela and Nigeria had disrupted output in those nations. Meanwhile, demand was rising.

Inflation played a role, of course. Oil at $33 a barrel in 2004 is roughly equivalent to $41 in 2015 dollars, which is higher than today’s price but still dramatically lower than the triple-digit prices the industry enjoyed a few years ago.

U.S. consumers were angry about high gas prices: Prices at the pump averaged $1.56 a gallon in 2003, a record at the time. (Adjusted for inflation, that’s $2.01 a gallon today compared with the current U.S. average price of $1.988.)

According to a February 2004 article in The Wall Street Journal:

Senior OPEC officials recently said they will try to keep crude-oil prices above $28 a barrel for the foreseeable future. At that level, high gasoline prices are expected to stick around world-wide.

So how did $30 oil go from expensive to cheap in just 12 years?