WTI crude oil falls below US$80 for first time since June 2012
Posted Oct 16, 2014 07:46:54 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The price for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil fell below US$80 per barrel on Thursday for the first time since June 2012.
At one point, it was down $1.80 to $79.98 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
WTI is a grade of crude oil used as a benchmark in oil pricing.
Economists are warning that Ottawa will have to weigh the potential risks of plummeting oil prices before it starts doling out large tax cuts.
The finance minister has promised to live up to tax-cutting pledges despite a sharp fall in oil prices — thanks to a projected surplus in next year’s budget.
But some economists say Joe Oliver will be forced to pay close attention to the slide since it could well affect Canada’s bottom line.
Former senior Finance Department bureaucrat Scott Clark accuses Oliver of being “almost unbelievably optimistic” about the surplus.
