U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew said plunging oil prices are like a beneficial tax cut for the nation’s consumers while having negative consequences for Russia, where energy is a vital source of revenue. “It is a great success story that we are now producing oil in the quantity that we are,” Lew said today in an interview in New York broadcast by CNBC. “The independence that we’ve developed in the energy sector, it is a clear positive if you look at the impact on our economy.” Lew’s comments came after Brent crude fell below $65 yesterday for the first time in five years. The shale boom has driven U.S. output to the highest on a weekly basis since 1983, with oil production up 65 percent in just five years and the country supplying 89 percent of its own energy in 2014. While Lew said the U.S. needs to […]