Yes and no.
He is correct in that the price of gasoline is fluctuating due to events in the Middle East, Israel is muscle flexing with Iran, Iran is running war games from time to time, Syria is experiencing human rights violations by their government, Egypt is having elections that are tainted by what can best be defined as 'divisive' election policies.
That is correct, however, the gasoline prices are fluctuating because of speculation. I challenge the fact there is little to speculate about.
Israel is ranked 99 out of 115 oil PRODUCING countries. If Israel exports it has little effect on the global oil supply.
So, we have oil producing and oil exporting countries that actually have effects on global supplies and supposedly commodities pricing on Wall Street. The speculation surrounding oil prices is hyped and has been hyped for several years now.
Iran is ranked 4 out of 115 and is undergoing sanctions to stop the development of nuclear capacity. The world has a right to levy sanctions for the purpose of averting war, citizen's deaths and global instability.
When a world of countries are exerting sanctions to maintain the stability of markets those should be upheld by the financial 'speculators' as honorable and best for all. In that lies an immorality if the global markets are putting pressures on governments by speculating unnecessarily and exploitation of a myth rather than facts for greed. The speculation is out of control because it can be not because it has a right to be. The pressure the markets are exerting on governments due to out of control speculation is also an assault against a government's sovereignty when greed is the goal.
Iran has been under sanctions for some time now, there is absolutely no reason for sanctions today to reflect a new reality when it is not.
Libya was noted on this blog to be producing more oil in exports than expected and more than past exports. There is no reason to cite Libya as a reason for increased oil prices. Libya is actually contributing to a decrease in the cost of oil
Pakistan is ranked 59 out of 115 countries in oil production. There is absolutely very little 'stable' about the Pakistani government for decades now so any instability there can't be adding to the cost of oil
Yemen is ranked 36 our of 115 countries and things are actually becoming better in Yemen, so there is no reason for them to contribute to oil prices.
It was noted on this blog that OPEC has just concluded their 'demand' on oil this year, so that is a stabilizing factor. Saudi Arabia is not in danger of any instability within its domestic economy or otherwise. Saudi Arabia has a long history of increasing production during difficult times with other oil exporting countries. Indonesia is about the same dynamic. Indonesia will not be experiencing instability domestically and will maintain and/or increase (within reason) production of the world is challenged due to instabilty in other oil exporting nations.
...The Houston company ( click here ) reached a deal with the Egyptian government to invest in exploration and production projects in the country throughthe end of next year, Abdullah Ghorab, the Egyptian oil minister, and Steven Farris, the chief executive of Apache, said this week. Oil and gas assets provide relativestability for investors in Egypt because they are not easy to shut down and are mostly far away from urban unrest, said Catherine Hunter, an analyst at IHS Global Insight in London....
As always Saudi Arabia are among the countries in OPEC to stem global economic disaster as related to their commodity of oil. The actions of these countries nullifies the threat of instability in Iran and the speculation should reflect that but does not. The problem is Wall Street and NOT OPEC or other oil producing and exporting countries.
In western North Dakota, (click here) oil production is moving faster than infrastructure is being built. The state is producing more than half a million barrels of oil a day and there are no signs of it slowing down.
It`s unclear just how much oil sits underneath the state`s 15,000 square miles of Bakken oil play. The state estimates the Bakken contains somewhere between seven to nine billion barrels of recoverable oil, but some geologists believe there`s even more oil underneath what`s currently being drilled.
"This is an industry that reinvents itself every 10 years or so, so it`s conceivable that future generations will be producing Bakken oil as well," said Lynn Helms, director of the state`s Department of Mineral Resources.
He is correct in that the price of gasoline is fluctuating due to events in the Middle East, Israel is muscle flexing with Iran, Iran is running war games from time to time, Syria is experiencing human rights violations by their government, Egypt is having elections that are tainted by what can best be defined as 'divisive' election policies.
That is correct, however, the gasoline prices are fluctuating because of speculation. I challenge the fact there is little to speculate about.
Israel is ranked 99 out of 115 oil PRODUCING countries. If Israel exports it has little effect on the global oil supply.
So, we have oil producing and oil exporting countries that actually have effects on global supplies and supposedly commodities pricing on Wall Street. The speculation surrounding oil prices is hyped and has been hyped for several years now.
Iran is ranked 4 out of 115 and is undergoing sanctions to stop the development of nuclear capacity. The world has a right to levy sanctions for the purpose of averting war, citizen's deaths and global instability.
When a world of countries are exerting sanctions to maintain the stability of markets those should be upheld by the financial 'speculators' as honorable and best for all. In that lies an immorality if the global markets are putting pressures on governments by speculating unnecessarily and exploitation of a myth rather than facts for greed. The speculation is out of control because it can be not because it has a right to be. The pressure the markets are exerting on governments due to out of control speculation is also an assault against a government's sovereignty when greed is the goal.
Iran has been under sanctions for some time now, there is absolutely no reason for sanctions today to reflect a new reality when it is not.
Libya was noted on this blog to be producing more oil in exports than expected and more than past exports. There is no reason to cite Libya as a reason for increased oil prices. Libya is actually contributing to a decrease in the cost of oil
Pakistan is ranked 59 out of 115 countries in oil production. There is absolutely very little 'stable' about the Pakistani government for decades now so any instability there can't be adding to the cost of oil
Yemen is ranked 36 our of 115 countries and things are actually becoming better in Yemen, so there is no reason for them to contribute to oil prices.
It was noted on this blog that OPEC has just concluded their 'demand' on oil this year, so that is a stabilizing factor. Saudi Arabia is not in danger of any instability within its domestic economy or otherwise. Saudi Arabia has a long history of increasing production during difficult times with other oil exporting countries. Indonesia is about the same dynamic. Indonesia will not be experiencing instability domestically and will maintain and/or increase (within reason) production of the world is challenged due to instabilty in other oil exporting nations.
...The Houston company ( click here ) reached a deal with the Egyptian government to invest in exploration and production projects in the country throughthe end of next year, Abdullah Ghorab, the Egyptian oil minister, and Steven Farris, the chief executive of Apache, said this week. Oil and gas assets provide relativestability for investors in Egypt because they are not easy to shut down and are mostly far away from urban unrest, said Catherine Hunter, an analyst at IHS Global Insight in London....
By Christopher Johnson
LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Nigerian oil exports will jump to their highest level (click here) in four months in April as output from a new crude stream starts to flow, traders and shipping sources said on Friday.
The increase in Nigerian oil production, much of it high quality with low levels of contaminants such as corrosive sulphur compounds, will help meet any shortfall from disruptions to supplies from South Sudan, Syriaand Yemen.
Africa's top oil producer is expected to sell around 1.96 million barrels per day (bpd) in April in 70 full or part cargoes, up from 1.87 million bpd in 65 cargoes in March, the sources quoted provisional loading programmes as showing....
"Oil prices developments (click here) are one of the potential risks to the global economy but there is awareness among G20 about this problem," Italy's deputy economy minister Vittorio Grilli told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of the Group of 20 leading economies.
"Oil-producing countries are aware of this potential risk and they have said they will act in a way to prevent the risk to materialize."
The world's top oil producer, Saudi Arabia, is a member of the G20. Other petroleum exporters in the group include Russia, Canada and Mexico.
Saudi Arabia increased exports sharply in the past week and is offering extra supplies to its biggest customers worldwide in what industry sources said appeared to be a bid to tame runaway crude prices....
Domestically in the USA, North Dakota is increasing production. Globally and domestically there is absolutely no reason why Wall Street speculation should be increasing the LIABILITY to the USA or global economy, but, they are.
Has anyone looked into decommissioning Wall Street and require commodities to be traded directly with its consumers? It is a conversation the global community should be having. Cut out the Middle Man and remove 'the wealth factor' from global economic survival.
In western North Dakota, (click here) oil production is moving faster than infrastructure is being built. The state is producing more than half a million barrels of oil a day and there are no signs of it slowing down.
It`s unclear just how much oil sits underneath the state`s 15,000 square miles of Bakken oil play. The state estimates the Bakken contains somewhere between seven to nine billion barrels of recoverable oil, but some geologists believe there`s even more oil underneath what`s currently being drilled.
"This is an industry that reinvents itself every 10 years or so, so it`s conceivable that future generations will be producing Bakken oil as well," said Lynn Helms, director of the state`s Department of Mineral Resources.
The Wealth Merchants and Greek Customers of Wall Street is destroying the democratic process. In the USA, the prime example of how a democracy is disassembled by Wall Street is noted by a corrupted Supreme Court and the unleashing of 'wealth' buying elections. This is a sovereignty problem and one that victimizes a populous and destroys their brain trust.
Why should the USA have a US Department of Education when employees can be obtained in China as all levels of management and production. Wall Street and its 'constructs today' has disposed of the necessity for educating Americans to produce a qualified work force. Why not unleash the power of the USA Treasury on Wall Street dreamscapes, while the citizens have no power to make it happen otherwise.
I have to laugh when I hear Right Wingers state they are all about unleashing the FREE MARKET SYSTEM. But, the Free Market System as they define it is contained in impoverished India and Communist China (ie: Apple). Americans should not equate the Free Market System with Freedom of Democracy.
Why should the USA have a US Department of Education when employees can be obtained in China as all levels of management and production. Wall Street and its 'constructs today' has disposed of the necessity for educating Americans to produce a qualified work force. Why not unleash the power of the USA Treasury on Wall Street dreamscapes, while the citizens have no power to make it happen otherwise.
I have to laugh when I hear Right Wingers state they are all about unleashing the FREE MARKET SYSTEM. But, the Free Market System as they define it is contained in impoverished India and Communist China (ie: Apple). Americans should not equate the Free Market System with Freedom of Democracy.
1:24 pm - February 25, 2012
11:24 pm - February 25, 2012
Oil prices rising to near 2011 highs (click here)
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices are approaching last year’s highs as tensions increase over Iran’s nuclear program. The rise pushed gasoline prices on Friday to a national average of $3.65 per gallon, the highest ever for this time of year.
Western nations fear Iran is building a nuclear weapon and have been trying to force it to open its facilities to inspection. Iran has refused, turning away international inspectors this week for the second time this month. The United Nations said Friday that Iran has responded to the recent scrutiny by speeding up production of higher-grade enriched uranium, feeding concerns that it is developing a bomb.
As both sides dig in for a protracted standoff, investors are snapping up oil contracts in case fighting breaks out in the heart of the one of the world’s biggest oil-producing regions. “Everyone’s pricing in the potential for war now,” independent analyst Stephen Schork said. “Without a concrete resolution, nobody knows how high this can go.”...
The cost of gasoline today is NOT about supply and demand it is about instilling the fear of a nuclear Iran. Doesn't that just want to make you drop the bomb and get it over with?
...Gasoline has become a major political issue this year as prices tick higher.
Some lawmakers have called on the Obama administration to release more oil from emergency stockpiles in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, but analysts say that would be ineffective. The government tried that last summer after the Libyan uprising shut down that country’s oil fields. Prices dipped slightly but eventually rebounded....
The cost of gasoline is NOT about supply and demand. It is NOT about the free market system. It is, however, about greed and how much Wall Street can leverage power over nations.
Sooner or later the United Nations has to draw up a resolution on the price of oil as dictated by producing and exporting countries and not the financial markets, otherwise, the global community will be in this negative feedback loop forever.
The free market system has not worked and will not work with a commodity that is becoming rarer and rarer everyday.
The oil exporting nations have proved over and over again they hold high moral content in their production and exportation in ATTEMPTS to stabilize the global economy. It is the financial markets that have provided immoral and unworthy.
Sooner or later the United Nations has to draw up a resolution on the price of oil as dictated by producing and exporting countries and not the financial markets, otherwise, the global community will be in this negative feedback loop forever.
The free market system has not worked and will not work with a commodity that is becoming rarer and rarer everyday.
The oil exporting nations have proved over and over again they hold high moral content in their production and exportation in ATTEMPTS to stabilize the global economy. It is the financial markets that have provided immoral and unworthy.
