Strategy for Oil Reserves

There has been talk this weekend of the United States selling some of its strategic oil reserves to ease oil and gasoline prices. It is a good thought, but this is not the right season for it. It is a move that would be better timed in June or July, when oil is seasonally at its highest prices. If the U.S. labor market continues to strengthen, as I believe it will, and if global political tensions remain unresolved, or hurricanes enter the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. gasoline prices will be near $5 per gallon this summer. At that point, a bit of price relief will make a real difference in the economy.