There’s a narrative that lower oil prices are unambiguously good for the United States but the market is less enthusiastic.

I don’t the some people fully appreciate the size of the US oil and gas industry. Since 2012, US production has grown to 9.5 million barrels per day from 5.5 mbpd and it’s expected to continue rising to 12 mbpd, trailing only Russia. Or at least it was forecast to rise that high but every dollar oil falls means less investment.

But it’s not just the decline in oil prices, it’s the speed of the decline. Any time an asset moves that far, that fast, it’s more bad than good. The market is getting blown out and there is about to be an absolute freeze-up in oilpatch credit.

At the moment, there is no telling where this falling knife nuclear warhead will get caught. There’s the big round $50 level followed by the long-term trendline at $42. I’d look for some kind of technical turnaround.

Fresh low at $57.34. The ruble is getting massacred.

Not laughing now, Vladdy!