Oil prices are now solidly below 70 a barrel and many analysts say they have more room to fall. That has americans celebrating as prices at the pump continue to fall, but not everyone is in a celebrating mood. Ill explain. But first, u. S. Oil futures settled at 69 a bashl. Prices seesawed between 63 and 74 a barrel. Prices have fallen 36 since peaking in june, and since crude oil is the main component for gasoline, prices at the pump have come down 29 in roughly the same time. The big reason that oil prices appear to be in free fall is because of a decision by opec producers last week not to put oil out put. Normally when demand lags, the leading Oil Producers get together and try to agree on supply cuts. But these arent normal times. Americas energy boom is creating more supply right when economies in europe and asia are starting to pull back on their demand for oil. Saudi arabia is viewed as the worlds sing producer. It has the ability to flood or cut supply into the global market. But they instead to keep steady. Meaning lower prices for now. Generally americans depend on their cars to get around, and the cost o fuel can take up a big chunk of household budgets, so american corn assumers win when oil prices fall, and that should help retailers too. Well talk more about how they did on the first big weekend of the holiday someone, but half of us are invested in the stock market usually through our 401ks or iras and most retirement accounts allocate some part of their investments in the energy sector. But around the world there are definite winners and losers. Patricia sabga explains. Reporter from tehran to moscow, countries that count on High Oil Prices are bracing for tougher times. The whole atmosphere can change drastically when prices come down. Reporter the latest slide follows saudi arabias dominated opec decision to keep pumping oil at its current pace. A tactic aimed at protecting cash rich market share at the expense of the poorer ones. None opec Oil Producers are also in the cross hairs, including russia already reeling from economic sanctions, capitol flight and high inflation. Moscow was counting on oil fetching 1,100 a barrel to fund its budget next year. Price pressures are also building in north america, with u. S. Benchmark crude trading below 70 a barrel. Middle of the change where most u. S. Oil fracers are believed to break even. They could also face lower tax revenues and fewer jobs if producers decide its not profitable to drill more oils. Falling prices should cut others some muchneeded slack, however. Such anz dea and other developing countries that depend heavily on agriculture, which consumes vastment amounts of oil through inputs like fertilizer and pesticide production. In countries like the United States where people rely heavily on cars, consumers will benefit from lower prices at the pump. But the biggest winner of all could be the global economy. As falling fuel costs move money away from producers into consumers pockets. Provided they spend the extra cash. Patricia sabga, al jazeera. Lower energy costs also mean that consumers will probably see fewer price increases for stuff they buy. Thats because companies will pay lower manufacturing and transportation costs. So why would falling prices be bad news. Its called deflation. Because companies wait to stop spending further. Here is another possible problem, so far there has been very little evidence that consumers are using the money they saved on gasoline to go on a huge spending free. Consumer spending barely improved compared to september. It is likely to improve next year, when it could translate to 380 per saving per season. Thats the view of kevin book. From a firm focussed on Energy Markets and analysis, and joins me from washington, d. C. This seems to be the most immediate of booms. The idea that you would get this big of break on your gasoline or heating bills, isnt that the same of a stimulus effect. It absolutely is. But were only seeing low prices for the first time, really, in the last several months. Year to date, you might have seen about 80. If you go all the way through to the end of the year, in net savings as a result of lower gasoline prices. 80 bucks isnt that much. Generally speaking with lower gas prices at some point it will change peoples behavior, but at what point do you think it kicks in, that wow, we really have lower gas prices, so i can afford to spend on Something Else . Part of it has to do with the income recovery in the areas where spending has been diminished as a result of economic hardship. If you look at where people have been driving the longest distances, those also coarse fond some of the areas where they have the lowest elements. Take the gasoline savings, were talking about big beneficiaries in places like oklahoma, indiana, vermont, wyoming. And those arent the biggest urban sterns in the country. We have been doing a series on the new cold war, and there are a number of people who have come in here and said if oil has a six in front of it, maybe even a seven, this is really going to hurt russia. What does this do to Oil Producing countries like russia . For russia theres two problems. The one is the one you mentioned, ali. The second is that russia is facing a long term decline in its conventional fields. Without access to the arctic, which is now blocked because of sanctions, russia is looking at less money now and later. Every time i talk about this topic, i get tweets from people who say, im just looking for excuses. Its unmitigated good news when oil falls, but big drops in the price of oil have caused a lot of economic dislocation around the world, and at some point it will cause that in the United States. Yeah, were still a net importer of petroleum, so as a result were generally benefiting on a brood basis. But it is impossible to ignore the growing impact of oil and gas production. So question now is a little different than the one we asked ten years ago, now we ask at what oil price, in terms of what low oil price, does production stop . And were probably starting to see some of those effects right now in the next month. Help me explain this to viewers. A guy just say boohoo poor oil companies. To hell with them. Why could it be dangerous if we get to pint that our more expensive methods of extracting oil from the ground, that that . Well, one is the income Multiplier Effect of these wellpaid oil jobs spreading out into the communities. Many hard hit rural areas. Take away those oil jobs, you take away broodbased economic recovery. Second manufacturing inputs to Oil Production arent just dollars, also scement and steel. Kevin good to talk to you. Thank you so much for being with us. Russia is locked in a new cold war. Coming up, im going to talk to the former president of the country that fought a real war with russia and paid for it dearly. Plus where are all of the Holiday Shoppers . Ill explain. Tell me what is on your mind by tweeting me or hit me up on facebook. Keep it right here. Primetime news. Welcome to Al Jazeera America. Stories that impact the world, affect the nation and touch your life. Im back. Im not going anywhere this time. Only on Al Jazeera America. A conflict that started 100 year ago, some say, never ended. Revealing. Untold stories of the valor. They opened fire on the english officers. Sacrifice. I order you to die. And ultimate betrayal. Drawing lines in the sand that would shape the middle east and frame the conflict today world war one through arab eyes only on Al Jazeera America the new cold war tins, and we continue to cover it right here on real money. Russia med the latest move against the west. Russian president Vladimir Putin announced his country is strapping a natural gas pipeline projected to send gas to southern europe. Instead russia will boost gas subpoena supplies to turkey. Putin said moscow was left with no other options. Russias relation with the west is at the lowest point in years because of the crisis in ukraine, at the same time russia is doing what it can to regain influence in europe. Reporter when notre dame said it didnt have enough money to install the tree, moscow stepped up. Its a message of peace said the russian ambassador, its also another example of putins campaign to garner influence across europe. Early earlier they lent a cash strapped party 11 million. And all of this goodwill coming just days after france refused to deliver two warships to russia because of moscow involvement in ukraine. The kremlin quickly pulled back from a threat of serious consequences if france reneged on the deal. But its more than Just Christmas trees and cash. At the g20, the german chancellor Angela Merkel has finally run out of patience, and putin is now playing court to the countries on the margins of europe looking to shore up old alliances. Russia forces are on maneuverers are the serbian army. Its an indication of russias determination to extend its sphere of influence across the countries on its borders. And russias Financial Economic investments across europe are extensive. Italy, russia is the countrys main energy supplier. Hungary, and austria. Its essentially for for kremlin to have countries inside europe, european union, he would try to block sanctions. But the main [ inaudible ] putin is better for madame merkel. You know especially after meeting in brisbane, she is now just furious about putin. Reporter the german chancellor delivered this speech following the g20 last week. She said this is abou about moldova and others. President putin is busy bullying and prescribing his way into influence and power in the e. U. , and the kremlins perception of this socalled crisis, it is convinced that e. U. s remorseless move represents a threat to russian security. Where the e. U. Goes, theyll tell you, nato will follow. Well the new colder war brewing between russia and the west had a dry run six years ago in another former soviet republic, georgia. And many of the issues that played out there is the same as what were seeing in ukraine. Go back to 2003, thats when georgians elected their president during the socalled rose revolution. A young reformer, he promised to reign in corruption and bring separatists regions back into georgias fold. Two regions had allied themselves with russia. In 2006, the south went a step further. They voted for independence in a referendum that the president denounced as illegal, but that the russians accepted. Two years later, george w. Bush started lobbying his nato althrice admit georgia and ukraine into the western military alouance. That angered moscow. So when the president unleashed his military in a bid to retake the area, Russian Troops invaded. Russian tanks cut off the highway. Russian jets bombed the cities, and Russian Troops advanced to the outskirts of the capitol. They only stopped when french mediation ended the conflict. In just five days of fighting a thousand people died and 130,000 were displayed from their homes. Sure the United States and nato denounced russias aggression, but they didnt do much else. In a prequill to ukraine, Russian Troops are now permanently stationed in two areas, and theres even talk of russia one day annexing one or both regions. The president left office in 2013 after losing an election for a third term as president of georgia. Since then he has been spending his time in the United States, where he accepted a lecturer position. He also spendings a lot of time here in new york city. As for georgia he now faces corruption charges back home and could face jail time if he returns. Last week i talked to the former georgian president. The conversation got off to a lively start. I suggested his decision tiggered a war with russia that cost georgia dearly. This is how he responded. I didnt order any attack. We were envieded by hundred thousand plus russian army. And i just order my troops to defend my country. And but for that difference the situations have a lot in common. Yes, and i think the reality is russia is a [ inaudible ] power, and right now is an opportunity for it. Because the west is focused on isis, isil. So for west priorities, rush [ inaudible ] putin said recently, he told western journalists, you know, im a tiger. This is my forrest. Here i can do whatever. So thats a gentle law introduced in our part of the world, and actually he is implements it. The problem is that there can be no deal made, because what putin says, you care about isil, i care about all of the countries around me. Give me this, and ill help you with other issues, the only problem is when he goes after his neighbors, he also is going after the west. Thats how the deal cannot be made, so there is this major discrepancy out there. When he sees it as the west, the interesting irony, is that ukraine, like georgia is not a member of the e. U. Or a member of nato, so they only get so much support from the west. Its a careful ploy. It is a complicated situation, because west has lots of leverage. What can be done to stop putin . Lots of things. Sanctions will start to work, but reality oil prices. The west can implement lower or keep the oil price at the level is it or even lower. If it goes to 60, putin is dead. If they go after putin money, putin is about his corrupt income. There are billions of his personal money in western bank. That is second important thing, and they should arm ukraine and other countries. Ukraine is large country and has big population. It can defend itself, but it needs to be armed. Chuck hagel wrote a report back in 2008 after russia georgia wars, where he was one of the early advocates of the reset policy. You had secretary of defense in first place who didnt believe in it. Now there are changes also in washington sew that might help. So what about the understanding that the west wouldnt press too close to russia . That the sense that the pressure has been put on russia because troops are showing up, many of its former republics are now nato members and russia is feeling cornered in. I think its not a correct way of thinking. Russia doesnt care what the west does. It has its interests. Its not somebody we force putin there are lot of useful idiots in the west who say that. Same way they said that about hitler. Incidentally the things that putin are saying is similar to what he was doing before second world war. So the reality is that putin would have gone aggressive and rock no matter what. Because from the beginning he proclaimed this was his goal to reassert soviet [ inaudible ] influence. And squeeze out the west from there. So the west can either appease him. Well, he proved all [ inaudible ] the west basically appeased after georgia then crimea happened. You say if oil goes to 60 a barrel this will crush him, but it will crush a lot of other things in the world too. It will put companies out of business that produce oil. Problem. I think what really is happening on there are two sides of it. In case of russia, it will be a problem. But it will also force russia to be a normal economy. And be just like normal country. What is normal . Diversified . Diversified, modernized. Give people more say, but the whole thing is this also is the result of shale gas. And the United States has lots of [ inaudible ] but then going back to the situation, one that today putin is on the offensive. This prorussian government in georgia didnt make much fuss about it. They made this deal to annex strategically very important area. Theres sea ports, oil there, amazing place, very takt place for georgia, but also very important for europe. Just said putin with not much adu about it, quietly signed socalled bill with [ inaudible ] to annex it. Why does he dare to do this they didnt call it annexation look, they moved their troops in to the depth of georgia territory. They diluted the border. There is no longer a border between the two, and basically between the [ inaudible ] region of georgia and vush vush russia. Theys also united their government systems, not only the army, but whoever is left [ inaudible ] 20 of the population has no say. They have been sidelined and this putin now. He did some kind of coup before that to put in the security guide, and basically took over. With the [ inaudible ] of course europeans didnt want to have extra headache that seems to be the way a lot of people are thinking about it but, again, he thinks its a window of opportunity now. He thinks there will be a lame duck administration in the west. No majority in congress, isil is diverting all of the resources, and europeans are kind of hesitating. We should be aware of next serious escalation. And i think he will be content eventually, its better done sooner than later, because europe will always have to pay price but it will be too late and too much. I think they should have learned from their history, but there are no new churches now in europe. But lets see what merkel and the others do. Coming up next from blake friday to cyber monday, retailers are ready for holiday sales. Just one problem, where are the Holiday Shoppers . Should you keep waiting before you make your purchases . Answers in just two minutes. Chances are you have recently been inundated with ads and emails from stores boasting unbeatable holiday bargains. But the Retail Federation painted a very ugly picture. Overall sales through black friday weekend dropped 11 this year compared to last year. The national Retail Federation predicted a gain for november and december. Ow member this is just a weekend. But its good news for American Consumers according to joel bynes from alex partners. Joel works with the firms retail and wholesale clients. I assume you mean this is good because if everybody didnt show up, retailers are going to have to cut prices more between now and christmas. Thats precisely right. It is always a waiting game, this year is brand new. All of the promotionals that stayed on friday are now moving earlier, that is diffusing demand throughout the week and month. And this is a new ball game for retailers. They are going to read these signals and then adjust their plans accordingly. When i see this 11 preliminary number it doesnt concern me as much as it would be in a normal year, because this di