The Virus Is Vaporizing Tax Revenues, Putting States in a Bind
With businesses closed and obligations mounting, state finances are stretched and poised to worsen.
Read MoreTexas has been the poster boy for good economic news in the US, and its decimation by the coronavirus shows what a rough ride every state has in store
As local governments in the state (but not the governor) implement stay-at-home orders to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, Texans are sticking inside, reported Gregory Meyer for The Financial Times. The decline in fuel demand is one factor behind oil cratering to around $20, the other being the ongoing oil-pricing war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. And it’s…
Read MoreOil price collapse hurting Texas oilfield industry
On Monday the price of U.S. crude oil dropped to below $20 a barrel for the first time since 2002. The oil price plummet is due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that’s halted fuel demand and disrupted various sectors of the economy.
Read MoreAs Texas economy sputters, will rainy day fund rescue state government?
Texas voters approved the creation of the rainy day fund in 1988 as an emergency piggy bank to rescue state government in case future leaders faced the sort of oil-and-gas crash that beset the state budget in the 1980s.
Read MoreOil bust and pandemic strike double blow for Texas
An economic cyclone is ripping through Midland and the rest of Texas, the leading oil-producing state in the US. The Covid-19 outbreak has led to government stay-at-home orders that turned busy roads into empty blacktop. The ensuing collapse in fuel demand has halved the value of Texas crude amid an all-out price war between Saudi…
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