Lower Gas Prices Could Hurt Some U.S. Companies
(CBS) -- Falling gas prices are great news for motorists and maybe not so good for U.S. companies down the road.
CBS 2's Jim Williams reports in March, 2012, gas at one West Side station was just under $5 a gallon. Today, it is a little over $3. How has this happened?
Fox Business contributor and oil expert Phil Flynn says, "The U.S. is producing the most oil it has in 30 years."
That includes getting more oil from shale rock through the controversial fracking method.
"Remember a couple of years ago, we're worried 'the world's running out of oil, it's going to be like Mad Max, we're going to be fighting over the last drop of oil and that's not going to happen. Now the U.S. is on track to be the world's biggest energy producer," Flynn said.
The OPEC nations don't want the competition, so, according to Flyyn they're threatening to flood the U.S. with much cheaper oil, hoping to slow energy investment here.
"If you're going to invest millions of dollars to start a well with the hope that oil prices are going to be a 50 and you're afraid they could fall to 30 or 20, you might not make that investment," Flynn said.
And that could damage other sectors of the U.S. economy, Flynn says. But for now drivers are glad they're paying less at the pump.
Flynn says parts of the country could see the price of a gallon of gasoline drop below two dollars, the lowest level in the United States in more than a decade.
