Oil Price Hitting $33 = More Money For Comics

[50 Cent #II (1st)]

Those recent billion dollar record profits have only been from "upstream (exploration & production) operations" is what you're saying? Then the lack of similar profits coming up will probably be just a coincidence that oil and gas prices went down? You're post seems to imply that the oil companies aren't the same companies as the gas companies, Shell Oil drills for oil and then refines it to gas and then sells it a Shell stations... I'm no expert on this, but even if someone showed me step by step documentation that supported it (a la, all the Bush administration of Iraq having weapons of mass destruction) , I would believe it was simply misinformation to get people to keep paying high prices for gas to keep profits up. From what I've read, all those new oil discoveries will take years to actually produce oil and therefore profits from them, they wouldn't show up immediately. Just call me ignant.

[The Troll King]

*Was about to reply but is still trying to keep his mouth shut, especially since he is one of those evil people making money off energy*

[delekkerste]

I'm no expert on this, but even if someone showed me step by step documentation that supported it (a la, all the Bush administration of Iraq having weapons of mass destruction) , I would believe it was simply misinformation to get people to keep paying high prices for gas to keep profits up. From what I've read, all those new oil discoveries will take years to actually produce oil and therefore profits from them, they wouldn't show up immediately. Just call me ignant.

 

Well, I am an expert, and your point of view is simply wrong. That's what makes it so frustrating - people want to believe in these fairy tales about Big Oil, even when confronted with clear logic and facts that dispel these out-and-out myths and fabrications. I really don't know how anyone can believe in these ridiculous conspiracy theories when you just saw oil prices lose 75% of their value and "Big Oil" couldn't do a thing about it. :doh:

 

The prices of crude oil and gasoline are set every business day on exchanges around the world; any cursory look at the actual data shows that refining margins have been flat-to-negative for most of the year. The independent refining companies have been struggling all year, while the oil majors like Exxon have had flattish results in their refining operations (of course, to know that would actually require spending some time looking at the facts). And, yes, the earnings of these oil majors will be coming down as the price of crude oil has plummeted and refining margins have remained weak. By definition, these companies are price takers, not price setters.

 

Sorry if this comes to a shock to some of you, but the world is not flat.

[Silver]

It's hard to be sympathetic about the oil industry at $33 a barrel oil. Just how much wealth was transferred to that industry in the last couple of years? Hopefully they saved a few buck from the $147 days....

[FlyingDonut]

I'm no expert on this, but even if someone showed me step by step documentation that supported it (a la, all the Bush administration of Iraq having weapons of mass destruction) , I would believe it was simply misinformation to get people to keep paying high prices for gas to keep profits up. From what I've read, all those new oil discoveries will take years to actually produce oil and therefore profits from them, they wouldn't show up immediately. Just call me ignant.

 

Well, I am an expert, and your point of view is simply wrong. That's what makes it so frustrating - people want to believe in these fairy tales about Big Oil, even when confronted with clear logic and facts that dispel these out-and-out myths and fabrications. I really don't know how anyone can believe in these ridiculous conspiracy theories when you just saw oil prices lose 75% of their value and "Big Oil" couldn't do a thing about it. :doh:

 

The prices of crude oil and gasoline are set every business day on exchanges around the world; any cursory look at the actual data shows that refining margins have been flat-to-negative for most of the year. The independent refining companies have been struggling all year, while the oil majors like Exxon have had flattish results in their refining operations (of course, to know that would actually require spending some time looking at the facts). And, yes, the earnings of these oil majors will be coming down as the price of crude oil has plummeted and refining margins have remained weak. By definition, these companies are price takers, not price setters.

 

Sorry if this comes to a shock to some of you, but the world is not flat.

 

What is interesting is those who CAN manipulate the price of oil - the KSA and OPEC - are trying their hardest to keep prices up, by reducing production, etc. etc., and the price is still coming down. I read somewhere that this is sort of a "reverse-bubble" and is the price is going down as fast as it is mainly out of deflationary fears.

[The Troll King]

It's hard to be sympathetic about the oil industry at $33 a barrel oil. Just how much wealth was transferred to that industry in the last couple of years? Hopefully they saved a few buck from the $147 days....

 

Silver, what you may not understand, or believe for that matter, is that for every $1 a company like Exxon/Harding spends, they only make $0.08-$0.09 profit.

 

Yes, that's right, less than 10 cents profit is made on every dollar. When you see all the on the news every quarter about how much profit was made by Exxon/Harding and "if they made $40,000,000,000 (that's billions!) then why was gas so high?"

 

The simple realization is that more than $400,000,000,000 (that's billions too) was spent to make the 40 billion.

 

No offense to anyone, but the average person can't comprehend how much money that really is and immediately gets riled up by the media wanting dumb things like "windfall profits taxes".

 

There's a serious problem with this country when you start wanting to tax amounts rather than margins.

 

The oil and gas industry in the US directly and indirectly employs more people than the entire auto manufactoring industry yet no one is talking about bailing out the 10's of 1000's of people that no longer have jobs due to lower energy prices (oil and natural gas).

 

I'll go back to keeping my mouth shut.

[The Troll King]

I'm no expert on this, but even if someone showed me step by step documentation that supported it (a la, all the Bush administration of Iraq having weapons of mass destruction) , I would believe it was simply misinformation to get people to keep paying high prices for gas to keep profits up. From what I've read, all those new oil discoveries will take years to actually produce oil and therefore profits from them, they wouldn't show up immediately. Just call me ignant.

 

Well, I am an expert, and your point of view is simply wrong. That's what makes it so frustrating - people want to believe in these fairy tales about Big Oil, even when confronted with clear logic and facts that dispel these out-and-out myths and fabrications. I really don't know how anyone can believe in these ridiculous conspiracy theories when you just saw oil prices lose 75% of their value and "Big Oil" couldn't do a thing about it. :doh:

 

The prices of crude oil and gasoline are set every business day on exchanges around the world; any cursory look at the actual data shows that refining margins have been flat-to-negative for most of the year. The independent refining companies have been struggling all year, while the oil majors like Exxon have had flattish results in their refining operations (of course, to know that would actually require spending some time looking at the facts). And, yes, the earnings of these oil majors will be coming down as the price of crude oil has plummeted and refining margins have remained weak. By definition, these companies are price takers, not price setters.

 

Sorry if this comes to a shock to some of you, but the world is not flat.

 

What is interesting is those who CAN manipulate the price of oil - the KSA and OPEC - are trying their hardest to keep prices up, by reducing production, etc. etc., and the price is still coming down. I read somewhere that this is sort of a "reverse-bubble" and is the price is going down as fast as it is mainly out of deflationary fears.

 

Dan, the President of Russia blames the US for the falling world economy and has been negotiating with OPEC trying to put an embargo in place AGAINST the US. They are also looking to put together an "OPEC" type organization so they can start regulating natural gas as well.

 

 

[delekkerste]

What is interesting is those who CAN manipulate the price of oil - the KSA and OPEC - are trying their hardest to keep prices up, by reducing production, etc. etc., and the price is still coming down. I read somewhere that this is sort of a "reverse-bubble" and is the price is going down as fast as it is mainly out of deflationary fears.

 

It just goes to show you that the free market is bigger than OPEC, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela, ExxonMobil, "Big Oil" or whoever else people want to scapegoat as the bogeyman for whenever oil and gasoline prices are high. Nobody can truly control oil prices - at the end of the day, all commodity producers are price takers, not price setters.

[VintageComics]

I'm no expert on this, but even if someone showed me step by step documentation that supported it (a la, all the Bush administration of Iraq having weapons of mass destruction) , I would believe it was simply misinformation to get people to keep paying high prices for gas to keep profits up. From what I've read, all those new oil discoveries will take years to actually produce oil and therefore profits from them, they wouldn't show up immediately. Just call me ignant.

 

Well, I am an expert, and your point of view is simply wrong. That's what makes it so frustrating - people want to believe in these fairy tales about Big Oil, even when confronted with clear logic and facts that dispel these out-and-out myths and fabrications. I really don't know how anyone can believe in these ridiculous conspiracy theories when you just saw oil prices lose 75% of their value and "Big Oil" couldn't do a thing about it. :doh:

 

The prices of crude oil and gasoline are set every business day on exchanges around the world; any cursory look at the actual data shows that refining margins have been flat-to-negative for most of the year. The independent refining companies have been struggling all year, while the oil majors like Exxon have had flattish results in their refining operations (of course, to know that would actually require spending some time looking at the facts). And, yes, the earnings of these oil majors will be coming down as the price of crude oil has plummeted and refining margins have remained weak. By definition, these companies are price takers, not price setters.

 

Sorry if this comes to a shock to some of you, but the world is not flat.

 

What is interesting is those who CAN manipulate the price of oil - the KSA and OPEC - are trying their hardest to keep prices up, by reducing production, etc. etc., and the price is still coming down. I read somewhere that this is sort of a "reverse-bubble" and is the price is going down as fast as it is mainly out of deflationary fears.

 

Dan, the President of Russia blames the US for the falling world economy and has been negotiating with OPEC trying to put an embargo in place AGAINST the US. They are also looking to put together an "OPEC" type organization so they can start regulating natural gas as well.

 

 

Is this actually true? I don't read much news lately but if this is the case this goes right along with they way I saw the new world forming after the great deleveraging.

The US has never had may friends outside of North America and will have a very hard time keeping friends after the sub prime mortgage disease...does anyone else see that emotions of the ROW having a great effect in the way they will deal iwth the US in the future...or is money just money no matter where it comes from?

[Aman619]

...like comics in the hands of bad dealers? Collectors will buy from whomever to get the book. I suppose in business the same rule applies: do business with anyone you can make a profit with.

 

hey Gene - - how close did Madoff come to you and your circle?

 

 

[Aman619]

It's hard to be sympathetic about the oil industry at $33 a barrel oil. Just how much wealth was transferred to that industry in the last couple of years? Hopefully they saved a few buck from the $147 days....

 

Silver, what you may not understand, or believe for that matter, is that for every $1 a company like Exxon/Harding spends, they only make $0.08-$0.09 profit.

 

Yes, that's right, less than 10 cents profit is made on every dollar. When you see all the on the news every quarter about how much profit was made by Exxon/Harding and "if they made $40,000,000,000 (that's billions!) then why was gas so high?"

 

The simple realization is that more than $400,000,000,000 (that's billions too) was spent to make the 40 billion.

 

No offense to anyone, but the average person can't comprehend how much money that really is and immediately gets riled up by the media wanting dumb things like "windfall profits taxes".

 

There's a serious problem with this country when you start wanting to tax amounts rather than margins.

 

The oil and gas industry in the US directly and indirectly employs more people than the entire auto manufactoring industry yet no one is talking about bailing out the 10's of 1000's of people that no longer have jobs due to lower energy prices (oil and natural gas).

 

I'll go back to keeping my mouth shut.

 

 

I see your point that the windfall profits come from a sliver of profit on a huge investment. But - - when theres that much money at work, and 10% throws off an obscene profit as a direct result of the magnitude of the investment, the profit can still be (and is) obscene! Maybe the tax should be on anything over a smaller percentage, like 2% or 5%. That still nets them plenty of bucks and would steer a ton of dough right back into solving some of our other serious societal problems, and NOT large shareholders and CEOs of Big Oil.

 

So long as we trusting the new administration to be making a serious effort (imagine hiring specialists in their fields to run government programs!) to catch up on the issues left to dry by the last 8 years (and the 30 before that too!) - - then why NOT steer as much as possible into making (forgive the word) change happen where we need it?

 

Im not being politcal, just saying we seem to have a window coming in the first year of a new administration that seems bent of reversing the drifting courses we have been on for decades - - a short window where things CAN get done before he too is bogged down in DC baloney and backbiting and featherbedding by BOTH entrenched parties. Why not do as much as possible while we can?

[TomG]

Don't forget about the issues in the middle east i.e Iran. This will be a factor regarding the future prices of oil. Might not be tomorrow or next week, but it will be sooner then later.