Latest info on current gas prices

[Southpaw II]

It's tough, but OUR price has nothing to do with the seller's Cost. Selling price is set by the market. If we want prices to drop, we have to use less.....they are going to charge whatever the market (us) will bear. I spent $120 one day last week filling up 2 vehicles because I knew the price was getting ready to jump over the weekend.

Don

 

[MonacoMike]

All I can say is thank the corporations and the speculators. The US has cut is daily use of fuel, Oil companies started exporting oil and gasoline to other countries, and the speculators keep making killings on profit by taking any little reason to jack up the prices. It is no longer about supply and demand. There is adequate supply and the demand is lowing, but the prices keep on rising from corporate greed!

So what is your plan? You keep bringing the same old saw to these discussions, what proof do you have that futures markets (speculators) run up prices other than "it's not fair" or "feelings"? Under your plan would people be able to lock in their energy costs by buying in a futures market or would they have to play roulette on their commodity costs? Bla bla bla corporate greed, a fiction of media, it is our own best interests and that of the corporations that motivate performance. If you have any type of investment ownership (retirement, IRA, mutual fund, or stocks) do you want to be invested with YOUR money in a company not trying to make the most profit they can?

 

[MonacoMike]

See. . .. that is the problem. Facts, as you use the term rarely, if ever, have a role to play in discussions. ESPECIALLY if they do not support the point you are trying to make.

The sooner you abandon the use of "Facts" in your arguments. . the better off you will be.


In all seriousness, we get the feeling of being ripped off for a variety of reasons; not the least of which being when a gas station raises it's prices daily during an "oil spike" -> when that station only recieves fuel three times per week, and the refinery that produces that oil requires additional time for oil to reach the refinery. While gas prices go up as much as 5 cents per day, it rarely drops more than 5 cents per week.

This is the point, it is the "feelings" we get when prices of commodities change daily and we cannot control or anticipate them. I agree that they rarely fall as they went up. One of the few that have gas prices to match cost is Costco. There is no other commodity that peoply have direct daily contact with that changes so quickly. Food for example goes through the distribution system so changes seem more gradual.

 

[chandalen]

Gas prices are high, Oil companies claim its the price of oil, yet the oil companies all are reporting record earnings. (a trillion in PROFIT over a decade)

I read an interesting article that shows that 40% of the price of a barrel of oil is based on Speculation alone. Meaning the Wall Street guys, and the oil companies are laughing all the way to the bank. Prices will NEVER fall much because too many investors will LOSE money if they did. these investors kick back to politicians so they turn a blind eye. Let a prez candidate run for office and man up to the oil companies and see if they have any chance of being elected.

America will hit a breaking point.

High fuel costs increase the cost of EVERYTHING.

If I had my way, I would subsidise Diesel fuel and make it amazingly cheap for Commercail use, on the stipulation that transportation costs would change accordingly.

If walmart has to pay 15% more for transport of goods... where do YOU think the 15% gets passed to?

Also.. down with the EPA, and the price fixing the oil companies do. A gallon of fuel does NOT cost the same to produce at a BP versus Exxon plant.

 

[bajturner]

The sooner you abandon the use of "Facts" in your arguments. . the better off you will be.

Rants are certainly way more fun without them!

In all seriousness, we get the feeling of being ripped off for a variety of reasons; not the least of which being when a gas station raises it's prices daily during an "oil spike" -> when that station only recieves fuel three times per week, and the refinery that produces that oil requires additional time for oil to reach the refinery. While gas prices go up as much as 5 cents per day, it rarely drops more than 5 cents per week.

The assymetry in price movement is annoying, but not what causes the overall outrage or panic reactions to the price of gas, I don't think...it is more the moving average price per gallon that gets people riled.

Also, there is some theory about quick rise, slow fall pricing of a commodity, and consumer behaviour is a big component. I have experienced it first hand in the computer memory market in the early- to mid-90s. Memory wholesale jumped around alot and my resale price would rise quickly and fall slowly otherwise I would lose my shirt.

When prices started rising (often nothing to do with supply constraint, just like gas) customers would start buying it up like crazy before it got too high (just like what happens at the pumps). I would have a limited inventory that was bought at a lower price (like in the tank in the ground), but I would crank the price on it right away. I would continue to have meet the heightened demand with more purchase liability of a product with rising cost (at a low profit due to feverish shopping around (just like with gas)), and when the price started to fall the demand would drop immediately (not exactly like gas). I would be stuck with more inventory at the higher cost than I started with (at the lower cost), and would often have to sell it at a loss.

Now, consumers don't have the luxury of not buying gas like people buying memory did, but there is a similar relaxation. People aren't rushing to fill-up when prices have levelled-off so that underground tank of gas that was refllled at the higher price takes longer to deplete, and the price at the pump has to ride a downward trend to meet the price of oil.

I know there is some gouging, but there is some economics to it as well, I think.

 

[280DA]

I drive 100 miles round trip for work...3.85 a gallon here right now
when gas hit 4.00 a gallon last time I was spending 25% of my takehome pay for fuel to and from work only on a 5 day week
I am salary so 6 day weeks just didn't happen at that time.

We pay 5.10$/US gal here in Québec during the last 18 months. !!!!!!!!!!!! A boating weekend reaches easily $300 just for the gas

 

[floriduramax1]

Rants are certainly way more fun without them!




The assymetry in price movement is annoying, but not what causes the overall outrage or panic reactions to the price of gas, I don't think...it is more the moving average price per gallon that gets people riled.

Also, there is some theory about quick rise, slow fall pricing of a commodity, and consumer behaviour is a big component. I have experienced it first hand in the computer memory market in the early- to mid-90s. Memory wholesale jumped around alot and my resale price would rise quickly and fall slowly otherwise I would lose my shirt.

When prices started rising (often nothing to do with supply constraint, just like gas) customers would start buying it up like crazy before it got too high (just like what happens at the pumps). I would have a limited inventory that was bought at a lower price (like in the tank in the ground), but I would crank the price on it right away. I would continue to have meet the heightened demand with more purchase liability of a product with rising cost (at a low profit due to feverish shopping around (just like with gas)), and when the price started to fall the demand would drop immediately (not exactly like gas). I would be stuck with more inventory at the higher cost than I started with (at the lower cost), and would often have to sell it at a loss.

Now, consumers don't have the luxury of not buying gas like people buying memory did, but there is a similar relaxation. People aren't rushing to fill-up when prices have levelled-off so that underground tank of gas that was refllled at the higher price takes longer to deplete, and the price at the pump has to ride a downward trend to meet the price of oil.

I know there is some gouging, but there is some economics to it as well, I think.

I understand and appreciate your logic. But, my tank only holds so much and I use roughly the same amount of fuel in my truck every week. I don't understand your logic of people "rushing to fill up". There is a little of that, but I'm sure that most folks are like me and fill up as needed to get to work and will continue no matter what the cost

 

[CW2008]

not the least of which being when a gas station raises it's prices daily during an "oil spike"

It's easy to jump on the local gas stations, but they better make profit on a rising marlet while they can. No one seems to complain when prices fall and they have more expensive fuel in their tanks. Competition pushes them lower in a falling market. I am not in the oil business, but my experience in other markets where materials are stored in bulk gives me some empathy here.

 

[bajturner]

I don't understand your logic of people "rushing to fill up". There is a little of that, but I'm sure that most folks are like me and fill up as needed to get to work and will continue no matter what the cost

It's not my logic, it's the logic of those who do it...and they really do.

 

[MonacoMike]

I understand and appreciate your logic. But, my tank only holds so much and I use roughly the same amount of fuel in my truck every week. I don't understand your logic of people "rushing to fill up". There is a little of that, but I'm sure that most folks are like me and fill up as needed to get to work and will continue no matter what the cost

Donnie, If you use a number of tanks a week you would not have control of fill-ups. Those that use less than a tank a week will run to fill up everything in they can before the price rises. So I agree with the post.

 

[Woody]

Until I took the new job 3 months ago, I was burning about 65 gallons a week for work in 2 vehicles. Now I am 3 miles from the house and buy 12 gallons a week. So I have gas money this summer. I have been banking the difference.

All I can say is thank the corporations and the speculators. The US has cut is daily use of fuel, Oil companies started exporting oil and gasoline to other countries, and the speculators keep making killings on profit by taking any little reason to jack up the prices. It is no longer about supply and demand. There is adequate supply and the demand is lowing, but the prices keep on rising from corporate greed!

You must have missed the part about global economy and world markets. The other growing economies and their demand on oil supplies illustrate pretty well the relationship between supply and demand. While our demand is lower others isn't and we are seeing the effect of their demand in the form of increased prices.

 

[Banagy]

In 2008 when fuel prices went up it was Bushs fault because of his oil buddies making big profits. So lets see if the same is true now the current president, must be taking care of his oil buddies for re-election

 

[bajturner]

In 2008 when fuel prices went up it was Bushs fault because of his oil buddies making big profits. So lets see if the same is true now the current president, must be taking care of his oil buddies for re-election

I have seen this asserted a few times. How exactly does a US President make oil companies big profits? Are US Presidents all in cahoots with foreign oil companies, whereby they tell them if they raise oil prices the US will still buy it, so they and American oil companies can make more profits?

 

[Pyrojodge]

Just found this...

 

[comsnark]

This is the point, it is the "feelings" we get when prices of commodities change daily and we cannot control or anticipate them. I agree that they rarely fall as they went up. One of the few that have gas prices to match cost is Costco. There is no other commodity that peoply have direct daily contact with that changes so quickly. Food for example goes through the distribution system so changes seem more gradual.

Right. Prices that move through a normal distribution system are slower (days / weeks) . Gas price increases seem to move notably faster (hours) than the distribution system.

I understand and appreciate your logic. But, my tank only holds so much and I use roughly the same amount of fuel in my truck every week. I don't understand your logic of people "rushing to fill up". There is a little of that, but I'm sure that most folks are like me and fill up as needed to get to work and will continue no matter what the cost

Right. . .and gas spikes occur over the span of months. Most people don't have enough gas tank capacity to buy 30-90 days of fuel at a time.

It's easy to jump on the local gas stations, but they better make profit on a rising marlet while they can. No one seems to complain when prices fall and they have more expensive fuel in their tanks. Competition pushes them lower in a falling market. I am not in the oil business, but my experience in other markets where materials are stored in bulk gives me some empathy here.

I can appreciate your empathy; but that is the nature of my original complaint. Gas prices appear to fall slower than the distribution network works cheap fuel into the tanks. . . .while the price increases do not follow the distribution path, but rather seem to hit the pump before the oil even reaches a tanker.

In 2008 when fuel prices went up it was Bushs fault because of his oil buddies making big profits. So lets see if the same is true now the current president, must be taking care of his oil buddies for re-election

Now that is funny.
I agree the President has far less control over pricing than one would think. However. . .one can really cook up some good conspiracy theories on this given a few minutes.

 

[Ka1oxd]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/29/us-usa-iran-sanctions-idUSTRE81S2F920120229

MonicoMike. I watch the market and the reports multiple times a day. You read the predictions of the analysis before report totals come out prediciting guesses on what the report will be. Then you see the prices go up or down. Then the report comes out with opposite what they say. In that short period lots of positions change hands. Each change some people loose money others gain. It is legalized gambling.

From the above article there were some regulations put in place to prevent this which has not been enforced.

Quote "On Tuesday, House Democrats asked the CFTC for detailed information on the size of the largest long speculative positions and whether margin limits could be hiked as a way to tamp down speculation.

If the CFTC enforced its new rules on the number of positions that any one trader can hold, that speculative premium would evaporate, lawmakers told reporters.

They said that speculation accounts for more than 50 cents of the average $3.73 per gallon that U.S. consumers pay for gasoline."

 

[Ka1oxd]

Woody, I agree with you it is partly because of globalization and the free market. Oil is a world wide commodity. What bothers me is the fact that in the last couple of years, the US has no problem with supply, to the point that we are now exporting gasoline and diesel fuels around the world. Most of this is because US production of oil is increasing. Shale oil has a lot to do with the changes in the last couple of years. Now that pipe line has been broken into segments, the first segment has been approved to be built while they come up with another path for the sensitive area. The path from the Gulf Coast to Cushing, Oklahoma is starting and expect to be completed and operational mid to late 2013.

http://money.cnn.com/2012/02/27/news/companies/keystone_pipeline/index.htm

And it you trust NY Times after they are paying those huge consulting fees:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/28/s...peline-permit-request-to-be-renewed.html?_r=1

 

[MonacoMike]

I have seen this asserted a few times. How exactly does a US President make oil companies big profits? Are US Presidents all in cahoots with foreign oil companies, whereby they tell them if they raise oil prices the US will still buy it, so they and American oil companies can make more profits?

I know, I know!!! They devalue the dollar that oil sales are based on then the price of oil goes up and the oil companies make larger profits. Do i get a gold star?

That d@mn sneaky Bush. Oh, Oh, I just realized Obummer is the one devaluing the dollar so he can say the artifically high stock market is am indicater of good economy he is building. The problem is commodities (including oil), food, and stock all rise when interest rates are held too low.

 

[MonacoMike]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/29/us-usa-iran-sanctions-idUSTRE81S2F920120229

MonicoMike. I watch the market and the reports multiple times a day. You read the predictions of the analysis before report totals come out prediciting guesses on what the report will be. Then you see the prices go up or down. Then the report comes out with opposite what they say. In that short period lots of positions change hands. Each change some people loose money others gain. It is legalized gambling.

From the above article there were some regulations put in place to prevent this which has not been enforced.

Quote "On Tuesday, House Democrats asked the CFTC for detailed information on the size of the largest long speculative positions and whether margin limits could be hiked as a way to tamp down speculation.

If the CFTC enforced its new rules on the number of positions that any one trader can hold, that speculative premium would evaporate, lawmakers told reporters.

They said that speculation accounts for more than 50 cents of the average $3.73 per gallon that U.S. consumers pay for gasoline."

Your "proof" is pandering politicans?

John Stossel explains it best:

90% of Americans blame “oil speculators” for at least some blame for oil prices, while 88% place some blame on the “oil companies” CNN reports. This puts most Americans in the company of avowed socialist senator, Bernie Sanders, John Stossel reports. "The skyrocketing price of gas and oil has nothing to do with the fundamentals of supply and demand, and has everything to do with Wall Street firms that are artificially jacking up the price of oil in the energy futures markets. ... (T)he same Wall Street speculators that caused the worst financial crisis since the 1930s through their greed, recklessness and illegal behavior are ripping off the American people again by gambling that the price of oil and gas will continue to go up." Sanders said.

Meanwhile the people most to blame are getting little blame: "politicians escape relatively scot-free. Only a quarter say that President Obama or the GOP in Congress deserve a great deal of blame for gas prices", CNN reports. Are we collectively that dumb? Stossel says: In America, we don't have a free market—we have a government-saturated economy in which oil companies and other corporations have a cozy relationship with politicians and bureaucrats. That's wrong, but even that can't explain the recent run-up in prices. Oil companies today are no more greedy or clever than they have been all along.

"Speculators help keep prices stable. When they foresee a future oil shortage—that is, when prices are lower than anticipated in the future—speculators buy lots of it, store it, and then sell it when the shortage hits. They know they can charge more when there's relatively little oil on the market. But their selling during the shortage brings prices down from what they would have been had speculators not acted."

"Speculators are like the ants in Aesop's "Ants and the Grasshopper" fable: They save resources for lean times. Everyone benefits because everyone has a chance to buy from them in those lean times. Speculators don't "artificially jack up the price of oil"—they take risks. Those who guess wrong lose a lot of money. Historically, speculators have been convenient scapegoats, and they have suffered greatly for it. So have the rest of us." Stossel adds.

I hate these unnecessarily high gas prices. We need to drill and get our resources ready to use ( we have more energy than the middle east if we want it) that alone will lower oil prices as will strengthening the dollar we buy it with.

 

[MonacoMike]

One mistake we make in these discussions is generalizing oil with gasoline. They are seperate commodities with different issues.