An increase in the price of oil did little to affect the U.S. stocks, with the market remaining unchanged at the close of business yesterday. “A jump in oil helped push up energy stocks, but other sectors slipped after disappointing data on the U.S. economy. European markets closed mostly higher after France endorsed Greece’s efforts to ease the terms of its financial rescue program.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 42 points, or 0.2 percent, at 17,210 as of 3:12 p.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite was flat at 4,637. The Standard and Poor’s 500 rose nine points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,004. The S&P 500 dropped 3 percent in January, its worst monthly loss in a year.
The price of U.S. benchmark crude oil rose $1.33 to $49.57 a barrel on signs that American oil production is slowing. Crude had surged on Friday, too. U.S. energy companies are under pressure to curtail drilling as prices fall to a level that makes some production unprofitable. Prices have fallen nearly 60 percent since last June as global supplies grew faster than demand.” [ABC News]
President. Barack Obama’s proposed $4 trillion budget for the 2016 fiscal year will see a sharp increase in investment for green energy technology and industries.”The White House is seeking to ramp up federal funding for clean energy and energy-efficiency programs, also calling for increased regulation of oil and gas drilling and a boost for a U.N. climate fund. The priorities fall in line with Obama’s second-term focus on cutting U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, addressing climate change and readying the country for the effects of global warming.
“We are making the investments we need to keep America safe, to keep America growing,” Obama said during a Monday morning speech at the Department of Homeland Security.
