http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2bd27560-7...0779fd2ac.html
Yet USA gas prices are still fairly modest, $2.60-2.70 / gallon in my area.

Bob Wilson

 

Yeah, gas around here just dropped about a dime, from $3 to $2.90ish. Not sure what that's about.

 

Gas prices are normally lower this time of year. Refineries are cranking out more heating fuel so the lighter end products like Gasoline are in relative excess. Also demand is lower because the summer travel season is ended.

Demand low plus supply high - low price

Just the opposite happens from late spring through July when gas prices are high.

Demand high plus supply low = high price

 

IMO gasoline prices will drop less when seasonally adjusted than
previous years. It has been around $2.60 in Dallas over the
summer. I don't think it will drop to the $2.00 range we saw here
last winter.

 

I don't remember seeing such a disconnect between the wholesale and retail price before . . . not that anything is wrong with this. I'm just wondering if we'll see a price bounce to $3.50+ in January/February.

No time to waste but keep on working on hybrid efficiency. It won't be smug as much as survival.

Bob Wilson

 

I know that in the fall we generally see gas prices drop- but right after they announce a hike in per barrel prices, you usually see a quick jump in pump prices. There's no real REASON for this, since the barrel prices are about current and future production, and it takes several months to get from oil wells in OPEC countries to gas pumps in Chicago, so it often seemed like a bit of a price gauging technique to me that there would be a quick reaction. Still, there wasn't one this time, which is a little unusual.

 

You will if we have a colder winter - remember last year we didn't have the cold/snow (at least here in MN) until January. You drive up demand for heating oil and you will see a serious price jump.

Scott

 

Could it be that the demand for unleaded fuel is down a bit? Could alternatives be having an impact? Are gas stations or distributors allowed to hedge fuels? I'm about to get a Town and Country minivan for a company vehicle. I see that tax advantages exist in europe for cars that put out less emissions but I don't see anyting written on the IRS website that would give any indication that a company could get any benefits from using cars that eat less gas and have better emissions. The minivan will be nice for comfort, but I'd rather have a Prius that can do everything I need of it.

 

Oil is at $96 a barrel. OPEC says they will increase production by 500,000 barrels a day. Yet Mexico's Cantarell oil field is expected to drop production by 500,000 to 1.4 million barrels a day in 2008. With falling global supplies and increasing demaind, I don't see oil prices staying under $100 a barrel in 2008. China alone has increased it's oil imports by 18% this year.

A significant reason for the apparent disconnect between oil prices and gas prices is do to falling refinery margins. Earlier this year margins were over $1 a gallon, lately they have dropped to 40 cents a gallon. Look at the news, all the major oil companies are reporting lower profits.

 

Thanks! This makes a lot of sense.

Bob Wilson