Price Plunge Puts Oil Patch Jobs At Risk (CNBC) Falling oil prices are giving the U.S. job market a shot in the arm. But if you. work in an oil field, your job prospects might not be so bright.Buoyed by strong consumer spending, the U.S. economy surged ahead at a 5 percent annual rate in the third quarter, according to the latest government estimates. Rising consumer confidence and a stronger job market helped propel growth, helped along by the ongoing drop in gasoline prices that is putting cash back in the pockets of American households. But falling oil prices arent helping the economies of states that are major oil producers. For starters, those states rely on taxes from oil revenue to help fund their annual budgets. Many had been counting on oil selling for north of $100 a barrel next year, which means falling crude prices will force higher taxes, spending cuts or both. There also seems to be little evidence that oil producers are scaling back on drilling and developing new fields, at least based on weekly rig counts. Producers have been slow to respond to falling prices in the past. With little certainty about the outlook for next year, some producers may be gambling that prices will recover and their oilfield bets will pay off. Even when prices are stable, oil production has never been a risk-free way to make a profit.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 20:20:23 +0000