Sliding crude oil prices may be setting up a permanent structural change for the energy market as the United States could become an oil-exporting country. The U.S. has sough energy independence since the oil embargo of 1973 to 1974 and the Iranian Revolution oil shock of 1978 to 1979. during this period the price of oil rose from $3.50 a barrel in 1973 to $39.50 in mid-1980.
Today, stock markets around the world are extremely sensitive to the downside volatility in crude oil prices. Selling pressure for oil is being fueled by OPEC, which recently increased production in part to reduce profitability for rival oil suppliers such as ISIS, Russia and the frackers in the U.S. This is a reversal of the dynamics of the 1970s, which is why today's oil market could face a structural change.
The consequences of an OPEC-induced oil supply glut are lost high-paying jobs in the energy sector, as well as the decline in emerging market economies and financial assets as other commodities plunge.
Source: http://www.thestreet.com/story/13395739/1/how-lower-crude-oil-prices-impact-markets.html
