Price of oil independence: Eternal conservation

Commentary: Recent price drop in U.S. no reason to increase consumption

PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. (MarketWatch) — The good news is that the price of crude oil has tumbled more than $33 a barrel from its recent peak. The bad news is that the price of oil has tumbled more than $33 a barrel from its recent peak.

From a high of just over $147 a barrel in early July, oil has fallen almost daily, touching a three-month low of $111 a barrel during the trading day on Friday before bouncing up a bit to close at $113.77.

That is a drop of more than 22%.

There is no doubt that such a development is good news for oil- consuming countries, especially the United States.

[…] Before we get carried away with all this good news, however, it might be worthwhile for us to examine the other side of this coin: It’s called conservation.

MarketWatch