May 23 New York

DJIA gained by 43.08 points to 20937.91 while SP 500 rose by 4.40 points to 2398.42.  Nasdaq Composite Index gained by 5.09 points to 6138.71.    WTI was $51.49 a barrel.  The rate of the yen to the U.S. dollar was 111.94.  The U.S. shale oil boom has dramatically altered the global energy landscape, turning America into a leading producer and reducing dependence on imports.  The increasing output of shale oil in the U.S. has caused a huge glut in crude oils in the global market that OPEC is still struggling with.  The present situation is a dramatic change from the period of the first oil crisis of 1973 and the second oil crisis of 1979, when the Arab Oil Embargo sparked long gas lines and damaged the U.S. economy so much that it inspired the creation of the strategic petroleum reserve.  The SPR today is the largest stockpile of government-owned emergency oil on the earth.  Now, President Trump wants to sell off half of the total amount of the SPR. TRump’s fiscal 2018 budget estimates that it would generate roughly $16.6 billion over the next decade, which could reduce U.S. national deficits.