If you haven’t noticed, oil prices have been cratering in recent days

If you haven’t been paying attention over the last week or two, oil prices have been tanking, and tanking hard.

By noon on Wednesday, Nov. 8, West Texas Intermediate was US$75.16. On Monday, Nov. 6, it was US$80.82. On Oct. 19, the price was US$88.37. That’s a slide of US$13.21, or 15 per cent, in 20 days.

But perhaps more significantly, Western Canadian Select has fallen below the US$50 mark. According to Oilprice.com, at noon the price was US$49.92. That’s a differential of US$25.24.