Oil Exports Rise Shrinking Deficit : Obama Attacks Oil Industry - No XL Pipeline

Bad news of Mr Obama and the progressive socialist liberal democrats - this has all the ear marks of prosperity for the individual and the free market. This is totally unacceptable and must be stopped at all costs. Little wonder Mr Obama will not sign the XL pipeline release or open federal lands for exploration.

WOW - what good reasons to vote for more democrats, right? Who wants a better life when one can live in poverty and the only future they have will be more poverty.

Trade Gap Shrinks as Oil Exports Rise
Source: Jeanna Smialek, "Trade Gap Shrank in 2013 as U.S. Fuel Exports Climbed: Economy," Bloomberg, February 6, 2014.

February 17, 2014

The U.S. trade deficit in 2013 was the smallest since 2009, says Bloomberg.
Last year, the trade gap dropped from $534.7 billion in 2012 to $471.5 billion. Rising petroleum exports are largely responsible, though more than just fuel was exported. Foreign demand for American food, capital equipment, cars and other consumer goods also jumped up last year.

• Petroleum exports rose 10.9 percent last year, up to $137 billion, a record number. Petroleum imports, on the other hand, fell to a three-year low of $369.3 billion (an 11 percent drop).
• In January, shipments of foreign crude oil fell down to 7.34 million barrels a day, the lowest since March of 1998.
• For 11 weeks in a row, domestic crude production has been above 8 million barrels a day. In the week ending January 10, production was at 8.16 million barrels per day, the highest since July of 1988.
• As liquefied natural gas terminals are constructed (the Obama administration has approved permits for five of these terminals, the first of which could be operational at the end of 2015), energy exports are likely to continue to increase.

In the fourth quarter, the U.S. economy as a whole expanded at a 3.2 percent annual rate, resulting in 1.9 percent growth for the full year. The smaller trade gap was responsible for 0.14 percent of that total growth.