By John Kemp LONDON, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Past changes in oil prices are closely associated with U.S. consumers’ and investors’ expectations for overall inflation in future, which helps explain why they are sensitive for central banks and other policymakers. In policymaking circles, there is an active debate about whether consumers’ and investors’ inflation expectations are relevant for setting interest rates and other elements of economic policy. Senior White House officials have begun to press their counterparts in Saudi Arabia for faster increases in production to help stabilise or reduce prices and indirectly to control inflation.