Truckers strike and now higher prices

[Tractorat]

I think there is a lot of wisdom in what he says about prices not having anything to do with supply and demand. I hope that those who think that is the problem are listening.



I agree with earlier posts that the problem has to do with wall street, and the international commodities market (market ?). I dont have a clue who this needs to be addressed to in order to solve the problem. Even if we all just stopped driving, I dont think it would affect the price of oil.



If someone (whoever that is) doesnt do something real fast (and I mean yesterday), Im afraid that the consequences will be disatorous. This is not just a US problem, it is a world wide problem.



Because of the now obscene price of oil (and therefore all energy), the cost of food is skyrocketing. Not just here, but around the world. And fields that used to grow food (or food for livestock) are now being converted to growing bio fuel (like that would even be a blip on the energy radar)



The way it is going, if you dont telecommute, how will you get to work ? Public transportation will never be able to handle that load. And with high energy cost, even that is/will be cost prohibitive. And even at that, most people just dont have the option of public trans to get to work.



I think that a world wide problem will soon be coming to a head. I also think that it will come down to another world war.

 

[TAbbott]

FLynes said: "Seriously, though, how did you guys do it in the old days, without losing money?"



Same way we try to do it today: Get paid a bit more for doing it than it costs to get it done. It's the same game, just a few new rules...



I have it a bit easier now than lots of folks because my equipment is paid for. If I park it, it doesn't eat me and if I can't find anyone who'll pay more than it costs to do it, averaged out, then it parks.

 

[TAbbott]

Also FLynes, you're not gonna try to tell me that you slept for 10 straight hours during arty fire are you? IF that's so, I imagine you got WIDE awake when it stopped, eh? I know that if you're tired enough you can sleep through most anything, but the transients can be difficult --- and the older I get I find I can sleep less and less. ****es me off sometimes!

 

[FLynes]

The arty fire I slept through didn't last ten hours, but the boys from the 82nd who were doing the shelling were right next to our compound. I had been awake for 96hrs straight, and I was just dead dog beat. The first blast woke me up, because it sucked the air out of our tent, but I went right back to sleep.

 

[Silver Bullet Ram]

There is no supply and demand problem. Oil refineries are running at 83% capacity to boost price and the oil traders on Wall street are pricing oil using fear and speculation tactics for hedge funds. Anything over $50/barrel is not based upon supply and demand fundementals. If the truckers want to make some noise is go on strike in front of the Nymex or pull their trucks out in the middle of interstate and shut it down there.

 

[Tractorat]

I think you hit the nail right on the head (although the oil companies are guilty of some gouging. Thats why I think they need to be broken up for the sake of competition).



The problem is, who do you go after ? And who is it that would go after them ? I think that the people need to put tremendous pressure on our "leaders" to, VERY QUICKLY, find out WHO to go after to change the way oil is sold on the market. And then to put ALL of our nations resources in that direction. Even if it means shutting down the government until it gets done. This is a national emergency that needs to be fixed very quickly. Or what will be left of us will just be a footnote in a Chinese or Venezuelan history book.

 

[Silver Bullet Ram]

Here are some names, Phil Flynn at Alaron trading, Ritterbach of Ritterbach and Associates (if I spelled it right), Boone Pickens, James Cordier at optionsellers, Antoine Halff, an analyst at Newedge USA LLC, Goldman-Sachs, Nymex, ICE. Senator Levin introduced a bill several times, called close the enron loohole that got shot down. The Enron Loophole is the problem.

There is a start.

 

[Kissfan113]

It may have already been posted, but I have noticed something...

I fully agree that the stock market and free trade does control the costs of the goods we buy. However I am questioning the whole supply and demand scenario. I have noticed oil companies boasting record profits every quarter, while I can see record profits in a quarter, I can't see every quarter, because that should mean from the way I understand it they are making more than last quarter every quarter. I don't see how thats a fair market. Every week fuel jumps 10 cents or so, and every quarter oil companies produce record profits, it seems to me as though if crude and the production and distribution costs were so high they may break even, or have marginal profits, but not record profits being that any profit is above the cost of manufacture... maybe it's just me.

Kevin

 

[TAbbott]

It's simple really, "Cost plus 10. " The "10" on a big number is more than the "10" on a little number. As the price of crude goes up, so does the profit.



The oil companies have the advantage of "pricing power" -- when their expenses rise, they pass it along (plus the "10"), immediately if not sooner. Most people and certainly most businesses don't have that luxury because of competition. Big oil has no competitors, just customers. You can either take the price increase or leave it, but you'll do without the fuel if you choose the latter. The market is manipulated by them reducing production when demand decreases, thus holding up the price.

 

[Todd G]

Oil refineries are at 100% capacity. Demand is up while supply stays the same. Oil company costs stay the same, so profits go way up with price.



Build more refineries and the cost will go down!

 

[RGardner]

Refinery capacity is not at 100% Last I saw was approx 83%. Big oil bought up many smaller refineries over the last several years and has closed most of them. Having more independent refineries could help.

 

[Tractorat]

I heard 83% as well. The reality is that we have enough refinery capacity to keep up with the demand. Although they havent build any new refinerys in the last 25 years, they have built up the existing refinerys to handle the load.



The problem is that with just a few large capacity refinerys, there are single points of failure. When the refinerys shut down for maintenance or to change for summer mix etc (or if they REALLY have a fire that isnt a ruse to cut back supply and raise prices) it does restrict supply and they raise prices (although I still havent seen a shortage because of this)



We need to build more refinerys so there is competition, and no single points of failure. I know, how about building some refinerys in northern Mexico financed by us ? That would provide good paying jobs in northern Mexico (maybe reduce some of the illegal immigration ?) and increase our gas and diesel supply.



TRat

 

[steved]

We have ample supply... we have a record surplus currently.

It is NOT supply demand anymore... the price is controlled by Futures Trading, it is bought/sold like any other commodity/stock.

 

[CumminsPower98]

YouTube - Lindsey Williams - The Energy Non-Crisis - Part 1 of 8 Watch all 8 clips for the full picture.



The book: The Energy Non-Crisis by Lindsey Williams