Most investors and families would say no, but not our government.
The United States plans to sell 58 million barrels of oil, currently held in the strategic reserve, over a seven year period, from 2018 until 2025, under a budget deal. This planned sale appears to be directly related to an inability, on the part of our lawmakers, to reconcile their spending wish list with offsetting spending reductions or revenue increases. Why make the hard decisions when you can just sell off assets or increase the national debt?
Selling assets, in this case approximately 8% of the strategic oil reserve, is essentially tantamount to dipping into your children’s or grandchildren’s college fund to indulge personal spending.
This is difficult to reconcile with established principles of sound financial planning.
Hopefully, investors and their advisor(s) will continue to adhere to strategies that build assets and manage spending.
All comments and suggestions are welcome.
Walter J. Kirchberger, CFA®