Dont look now...Oil nears $130 pbl (1 Viewer)

[efil4stnias]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080520/ap_on_bi_ge/oil_prices


Haven't seen an "oil" thread in a while....this is crazy. I guess Goldman Sachs analysts are looking more and more like "market-makers" daily....We will see gas > $4.00 within the next 3 weeks if this pace keeps up ( i mean national avg since some folks already pay $4.00 plus )

 

[kooldak]

Yep. already there for some. I paid $4.02 up in Colorado on Saturday...

Geez am I glad I sold my Navigator right before the prices stared to go out the roof.

 

[pennstater]

I was told gas prices will hit $5.00 a gallon.

 

[superchuck500]

Goldman Sachs predicts $140 by mid-summer. And $7.50 gas in 2010.

 

[iron error]

What do you all think is the freak-out threshold for people on average?

I used to think $4, but I now think its $5. That is the point when people stop driving to things, there is mass carpooling, people flat out put the cars away and get on the bus, etc.

 

[blackadder]

Goldman Sachs predicts $140 by mid-summer. And $7.50 gas in 2010.

And that is without factoring in expanded military action in the Middle East.

We're on the brink of something that stupid men could easily allow to spiral out of control.

 

[HoustonSaint68]

This is a pretty good (short) article -- it's a lot more complicated, but this hits the high points of why we are where we are....

http://money.cnn.com/2008/05/20/news/economy/gas_price_history/index.htm?cnn=yes

 

[iron error]

If what I have heard is correct, and I have not researched it yet, the price of rebar has doubled in the past two weeks. Not good.

 

[efil4stnias]

If what I have heard is correct, and I have not researched it yet, the price of rebar has doubled in the past two weeks. Not good.

as in steel? Can you explain what relation to oil? I didnt know there was a correlation....

(unless a joke, which i am not in on )

 

[blackadder]

What do you all think is the freak-out threshold for people on average?

I used to think $4, but I now think its $5. That is the point when people stop driving to things, there is mass carpooling, people flat out put the cars away and get on the bus, etc.

The interim step would be further cutting back other discretionary purchases.

Starbucks, restaurants, bars and cinemas and other discrationary dependent businesses would see greater a greater fall off in business before you get to the point that people stop using their cars altogether.

But we may not be that far away. The average American already did not save more than a negligible amount because they could not afford to even whan gas was hitting $2.00. Every bit of income was consumed. National savings rate sat around 2% in recent years and went negative recently -- first time it was in that territory since 1932 or so.

Now if you stay above $4 and go beyond $5 you have a lot of people resorting to credit cards just to keep the household afloat.

At some point something will have to give and economic activity would contract and a decline in oil prices would follow. But it's not likely to back near 2$ in the foreseeable future, if at all.

 

[HoustonSaint68]

as in steel? Can you explain what relation to oil? I didnt know there was a correlation....

(unless a joke, which i am not in on )

I didn't quite get the connection either, but I do know that the price of steel is just one of the many inflationary factors which are increasing the cost to develop offshore sources of oil by fivefold over the last 5 years. Steel is way up over the last few years.

 

[efil4stnias]

What do you all think is the freak-out threshold for people on average?

I used to think $4, but I now think its $5. That is the point when people stop driving to things, there is mass carpooling, people flat out put the cars away and get on the bus, etc.

for me will be $4.50 and up....at that point I will HAVE to pay attention. I travel 82 miles per day (round trip) to get to/from work. I drive a 2002 Honda Accord that gets around 24 mpg. I also have a 2007 Tahoe that will get the boot and turned into another smaller vehicle with better gas mpg. But then I will be sacrificing safety for my wife and children versus monetary reasons. I will hold out as long as possible, but its becoming more and more apparant that this isnt going away soon ( rising gas prices )

How bout changing the tax code to allow ALL tax-payers to deduct fuel costs regardless of "occupation" to alleviate the rising gas costs?

 

[kooldak]

as in steel? Can you explain what relation to oil? I didnt know there was a correlation....

(unless a joke, which i am not in on )

Over simplified explanation, but it takes fuel, and a lot of it, to fire the furnaces needed to make steel. It takes fuel to transport the finished product.

Some good and some bad here. Japan has become a major supplier of steel to the US. As transportation costs rise, steel made in the good ole US of A may become more cost effective, bringing jobs and such back into the country.

Time will tell, but rising fuel costs will ultimately affect everything we buy and/or use.

 

[efil4stnias]

Over simplified explanation, but it takes fuel to fire the furnaces needed to make steel. It takes fuel to transport the finished product.

Some good and some bad here. Japan has become a major supplier of steel to the US. As transportation costs rise, steel made in the good ole US of A may become more cost effective, bringing jobs and such back into the country.

Time will tell, but rising fuel costs will ultimately affect everything we buy and/or use.

thats kinda what i figured ...but thought maybe there was a whole other reason. I do know you toss 80,000 lbs of coiled steel on a flatbed and that truck that got 15 mpg now gets 8 mpg. Gotta make up for the added fuel cost somewhere.

 

[iron error]

I didn't quite get the connection either, but I do know that the price of steel is just one of the many inflationary factors which are increasing the cost to develop offshore sources of oil by fivefold over the last 5 years. Steel is way up over the last few years.

it was not on topic, just sort of thrown in for some reason, sorry.