Falling crude oil pulls gas down 50 cents since April

Oil traders might see the 27 percent slide in global prices as a bear market. For U.S. consumers, it’s like an early holiday gift.

The drop in crude has pulled retail gasoline down more than 50 cents a gallon from the year’s high in April. That means annual savings of $500 for the average U.S. household, which consumes about 1,000 gallons of fuel a year, according to data from the Federal Highway Administration and Energy Information Administration.

“That’s like somebody putting dollars right in your pocket,” David Hackett, the president of Stillwater Associates, an energy consultant in Irvine, California, said.

Gasoline’s slide represents the biggest benefit that U.S. consumers have seen to date from a record boom in domestic oil production, a surge that’s contributing to a global crude glut and helping reduce international prices. U.S. gasoline is being exported at record levels for this time of year.

The average retail price fell 1.9 cents to $3.144 a gallon, AAA said on its website. That’s down from this year’s peak of $3.696 in April and the lowest since February 2011.

Jump in multifamily units increases housing starts

Housing construction picked up in September, buoyed by a surge in apartment-building.

Housing starts increased 6.3 percent from August, according to new figures from the Census Bureau, a pace a bit faster than analysts expected. That figure was driven by a 18.5 percent jump in starts for buildings with five or more units. Building permits were up 1.5 percent.

Home builders say they’re seeing increased demand as interest rates remain low and the economy gradually improves. Meanwhile, multifamily developers have been pushing to keep up with high demand for apartments as more households rent and more young adults are moving out on their own.

Year to date, apartment construction is up 22.7 percent, and completions of buildings with five or more units is up 43 percent.

GM’s top attorney will retire after ignition switch crisis

Michael Millikin, General Motors general counsel, will retire early next year, about a year after the company’s costly delayed recall of 2.6 million cars equipped with defective ignition switches that have been tied to 27 fatalities.

The 66-year-old lawyer worked for GM for 38 years, the last five as its top attorney.

Millikin’s leadership came under scrutiny when former U.S. prosecutor Anton Valukas delivered a comprehensive investigation revealing that Millikin did not know about the ignition switch defect until February. Valukas revealed that lawyers were allowed to settle lawsuits for up to $5 million without Millikin’s approval.

– From news service reports