The last time oil prices dropped below $30 a barrel was years ago. And the last time oil was in the 20s was Dec. 1, 2003 when gasoline was being pumped for what was then a record amount of $1.52 a gallon.
U.S. oil production at the time was 5.7 million barrels a day. Today it is 9.1 million barrels a day.
In 2003, there were 989 working oil and gas rigs in the country compared to the 635 reported this week by Baker Hughes Company.
A dozen years ago, energy production companies did not have the workforces they do now. As an example, Schlumberger had 77,000 in 2003 compared to the 100,000 on the payroll now.
