Ĭlick here for politics news related to business and money Rick Newman is a senior columnist for Yahoo Finance. But overall inflation was low under Obama, and high gas prices didn't remind voters of everything else that was more expensive. If there's any encouragement for Biden, it's that Obama won reelection in 2012 with gas prices considerably higher than the average of the prior five years - the same situation Biden faces now. There may also be a tacit agreement between Washington and Riyadh for more Saudi production if US gasoline prices get too high and Biden needs an assist. That may eliminate the reserve as a possible source of oil supply heading into the thick of the 2024 election cycle.īiden has also allowed Venezuela to import a bit more oil to the United States, and there may be a quiet deal afoot to let sanctioned Iran export more oil. He sold 180 million barrels of oil from the US reserve in 2022, leaving that emergency supply at the lowest level since 1983. Thing is, oil prices are set in global markets no American president can control. Even so, US oil production is likely to hit a new record high this year or next, as producers cash in on higher prices by drilling more. Since then, drillers and their investors have flipped the script and emphasized profits over growth, which has reduced US supply compared with where it might be if drillers were still willing to produce at a loss. When the COVID pandemic hit in 2020, energy prices crashed, causing massive losses at fossil-fuel producers. That lowered oil and gasoline prices during Obama’s second term and Donald Trump’s presidency, conditioning drivers to abnormally low gasoline prices that were basically subsidized by poor returns for drillers. But American drillers overproduced for a decade or so, aiming to grow at the expense of profitability. The advent of new “ fracking” technology led to a boom in US energy production, starting around 2011. (Jim Watson/AFP)īiden’s verbal hostility toward fossil fuels, combined with his embrace of green energy, leaves the impression that Biden has somehow shackled the oil and gas industries, forcing prices up. President Joe Biden speaks on how "Bidenomics" is helping clean energy and manufacturing, at Arcosa Wind Towers in Albuquerque, N.M., on Aug.
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