Crude Oil Prices Fall
Financial news sources are reporting that the price of crude oil in the U.S. are down today, a result of markets reacting to the news that U.S. forces killed Osama bin Laden yesterday. Not only are oil prices down, but futures in crude oil, gasoline and heating oil are falling as well. The prices haven’t fallen much; so far they’re down about 70 cents, according to The Wall Street Journal. But as of this posting, there’s still time left in the day for them to fall further or even out.
Besides the big news of Osama bin Laden’s death, Reuters reports that there are a few other prices affecting oil prices today. They list multiple reasons that oil prices could rise, including unrest in Libya, Yemen and Syria, and the possibility that oil sources may be hit by reprisals from Al Qaeda. But oil production is increasing in Saudi Arabia and Russia, and is holding steady in Qatar, and the dollar is gaining value on the international market.
So, what does this news mean for those of us filling up at the pump? In the short run, it looks like prices won’t drop much. Continued unrest in the Middle East will keep prices high, and any decrease will take a while to trickle down to gas stations. “But if the death of bin Laden leads Obama to end the war in Afghanistan sooner, oil prices would likely trend lower,” reports CNN Money. It may take a while for Americans to see lower gas and heating prices, but they could potentially be on their way.
This news is definitely not a reason to rush out and buy a gas-guzzling all-wheel drive Chevrolet Suburban or Lamborghini Murcielago, which get EPA city ratings as low as 10 mpg and 8 mpg respectively. But it shows that there may be an end in sight to the high gas prices the U.S. has seen in the past few months. Some of the prices that fell today were oil futures for June shipments, so we may see lower numbers at the pump as early as the summer. Still, prices aren’t expected to drop by much. If you want to save money on gas in the next few months, your best bets are probably to buy an alternative fuel vehicle like a Toyota Prius or Volkswagen Jetta TDI, or an affordable small car with great fuel economy like the Ford Fiesta with the super fuel economy package.
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