CHESSNOID

I know it is hard to find a silver lining in this economy but one good thing is crude oil is falling.  It is still high compared to what it was 3-4 years ago, but it has come down almost 50% from its recent high of $147 a barrel. According to CNN.Money:

U.S. crude for November delivery sank as much as $9.50 to a low of $77.09 a barrel during Friday trading, its lowest level since Sept. 11, 2007, when crude hit an intraday low of $77.00.

Prices later recovered slightly to settle down $8.89 to $77.70 a barrel in New York, oil’s lowest close since Sept. 10, 2007, when crude ended the day at $77.49.

Friday’s plunge was the third largest dollar amount on record following a fall of $10.56 on Jan. 17, 1991, prompted by the launch of Operation Desert Storm, and $10.56 just over a week ago on Sept. 29 after the House made its first attempt to pass the $700 billion bailout plan to shore up the economy.

Investors remain concerned that a crumbling economy is causing businesses and consumers to cut back on fuel consumption.

During Friday trading the Dow Jones industrial average lost nearly 700 points before recovering to add about 150 points, or about 1.7%.

If oil ends the day below $80 a barrel, crude prices could slide even further in the coming weeks, according to James Cordier, founder of OptionSellers.com in Florida.

“People have to remember oil used to trade for the longest time at $35 to $40 a barrel,” said Cordier, referring to prices not seen since 2004. “The consumption that we saw back then, we could see it again.”

Hopefully, we will see these drops translated at the pump.  Wouldn’t it be nice to see gas below $2.00 a gallon again.  Who knows, we may actually see it sooner than later at the rate it is falling right now.