The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas prices are
expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next two weeks! What's
the explanation for that? Anyone know some facts?

Bryan wrote:
The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas prices are
expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next two weeks! What's
the explanation for that? Anyone know some facts?




Dick Cheney's retirement fund.

On Feb 23, 7:37�am, "Bryan" wrote:
The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas prices are
expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next two weeks! *What's
the explanation for that? *Anyone know some facts?

When pressed for reasons, the only people in a position to know why
the prices of refined products fluctuate as they do (the oil companies
and their spokesmen) will always cite "supply and demand".

In a free market, that means the price will go up until overall
profits are suppressed by a decrease in demand. So far, regardless of
the price, we have
demonstrated that we will continue to demand as much as the refiners
choose to supply. With the passage of winter, there is less need to
keep prices down and avoid the political drama of "freezing granny out
of her house and home", and it's back to sock-it-to-us time for
discretionary uses like boating and vacation driving. The current
stock values of Big Oil are based on last year's record profits (Exxon
netted over $4 million an hour, 24/365) and unless investors can be
assured that such profits are sustainable the stock prices will fall.

But heck, where in the Bill of Rights does it say that we're entitled
to cheap gasoline and diesel? Given the same corner on the market and
the control of the entire chain of distribution from extracting raw
materials to retailing finished products that a handful of oil
companies enjoy, darn few people would be able to say that they
wouldn't do *exactly* the same thing that Big Oil has done the last
couple of years.

Expect another ugly year at the fuel dock, but the good news is that
it won't seem quite so bad as before because we're all becoming
accustomed to paying 50-cents a pint. :-)

On Fri, 23 Feb 2007 15:37:40 GMT, "Bryan" wrote:

The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas prices are
expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next two weeks! What's
the explanation for that? Anyone know some facts?

Perhaps it's to provide for sick leave and pay to the unemployed homeless
flocking to the city to partake in the gay and NAMBLA parades therein.

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...
Bryan wrote:
The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas prices
are expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next two weeks!
What's the explanation for that? Anyone know some facts?


Dick Cheney's retirement fund.

Gas went up overnight here by approx 10 cents a liter to $ 1.04 regular self
pumped..

Bryan wrote:
The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas prices are
expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next two weeks! What's
the explanation for that? Anyone know some facts?



That's too much unless there's a local refinery out or some such, like
increased taxes kicking in. Just watch the commodity exchange futures.
Unl regular is projected to increase only 10 cents by April, then creep
up more for the summer vacationers.

MTV

"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

In a free market, that means the price will go up until overall
profits are suppressed by a decrease in demand. So far, regardless of
the price, we have
demonstrated that we will continue to demand as much as the refiners
choose to supply. With the passage of winter, there is less need to
keep prices down and avoid the political drama of "freezing granny out
of her house and home", and it's back to sock-it-to-us time for
discretionary uses like boating and vacation driving.

Chuck, it's going to hurt when we take our trailer vacation this summer and
it'll be more expensive for our summer boating, but it's my daily 110 mile
round trip commute to/from my paycheck that's going to hurt the most, not to
mention the increased cost of goods secondary to the once again increasing
gas prices.

MTV wrote:

Bryan wrote:

The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas
prices are expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next
two weeks! What's the explanation for that? Anyone know some facts?


That's too much unless there's a local refinery out or some such, like
increased taxes kicking in. Just watch the commodity exchange futures.
Unl regular is projected to increase only 10 cents by April, then creep
up more for the summer vacationers.

MTV

On CNBC at 1:10PM today, oil-60.83 and unl-1.744. We'll be traveling the
first week in April and I expect $2.50/gallon.
Hugh

"JLH" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 23 Feb 2007 15:37:40 GMT, "Bryan" wrote:

The news ticker tape just said that Bay Area (San Francisco) gas prices
are
expected to increase by 40 cents per gallon over the next two weeks!
What's
the explanation for that? Anyone know some facts?

Perhaps it's to provide for sick leave and pay to the unemployed homeless
flocking to the city to partake in the gay and NAMBLA parades therein.

JLH, oh never mind.

On 23 Feb 2007 09:11:09 -0800, "Chuck Gould"
wrote:

Expect another ugly year at the fuel dock, but the good news is that
it won't seem quite so bad as before because we're all becoming
accustomed to paying 50-cents a pint. :-)

What a bargain, if we could only get a good beer for that...

There is a plus side to high energy prices that is not well understood
or appreciated:

1. Encouraging exploration for new sources of supply which are badly
needed.

2. Providing incentives for new research into alternative energy
sources which is the best long term solution.

3. High prices create a self imposed rationing system which tends to
weed out inefficient or unnecessary usage.

As an example of encouraging alternative energy sources, wind power is
on the verge of becoming economically viable even without subsidies.
Solar power is not there yet but the price of an installed watt has
dropped almost 90% in constant dollars over the last 30 years.

There has also been huge progress in battery technology which is
critical for electric automobiles (and possibly electric boats):

http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2...14/011211.html

http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/070223/0219304.html

http://www.altairnano.com/