hurricane causing increase gas $

[broncosi]

for every gas station that has a line: our mayor here says dont rush to go get gas, just use it how you normally would, and fill up on average how you normally would and there will be no lines, the only reason there are lines are because ppl think we are running out of gas, were not, i beleive at the last moment bush or whoever will decide to go ahead and tap into the reserves. i bet those little electric car ppl are laughing in our faces right now

 

[boston_kevin]

Really? There has been no increase in demand, nor decrease in supply one day after the hurricane hit. Not yet anyway. This is short term profiteering, no better than the looters down south. Just a fact... not a conspiracy theory.

No increase in demand??? How about the thousands of vehicles, both military and civilian that have been mobilized to pick up survivors and find missing people... You now have commercial vehicles that used to sit idle for days at a time that are working around the clock.

No decrease in supply??? How do you suppose they are going to access the tanks located in the flood zone? Millions of gallons of gasoline stored in tanks outside of the refineries and on the coast that are now inaccessible due to the waters that are too deep for vehicles and too shallow for tankers. Not to mention no power to pump out the gas...

Granted some are making huge profits because they have the gas and other areas don't. These people, like all of the looters, should be shot on site... No questions asked. I can understand the need for food, clothing, but does that make it right to steal jewelry, guns, electronics and everything else?

 

[desrt_rat]

a friend of mine is a manager at Cheveron and he says that a lot of stations around here are closing because they refuse to pay the price that they are being charged. we are at 2.94 for reg and 3.19 for diesel. its going to cause a trucker strike and then we will se what happens.

 

[charlier180]

I filled up on Monday afternoon when 87 octane was $2.419. As of Thursday morning that same gallon of gas was $2.999. I fully expect when I go home from work the price will be 10-20 cents higher.

Until the oil companies build more refining capacity in addition to re-building their Gulf Coast locations we are all in for high fuel prices. Since the oil companies have been raking in record profits I seriously doubt they will build more refineries because that would cost them money and with the higher supply prices could go down.

After seeing all the death and destruction in the Gulf Coast area we all do need to take a moment to consider how fortunate we are to have our families, friends and our everyday lives. Many people in the areas impacted by the hurricane have lost all of that. We should all consider what we have and reach out to those people when/where possible to lend a helping hand.

 

[seancgn68]

No increase in demand??? How about the thousands of vehicles, both military and civilian that have been mobilized to pick up survivors and find missing people... You now have commercial vehicles that used to sit idle for days at a time that are working around the clock.

No decrease in supply??? How do you suppose they are going to access the tanks located in the flood zone? Millions of gallons of gasoline stored in tanks outside of the refineries and on the coast that are now inaccessible due to the waters that are too deep for vehicles and too shallow for tankers. Not to mention no power to pump out the gas...

My point was merely that the gas stations around the US were not feeling the affect of any of this 12 hours after the storm, but still hiked their gas prices $0.30 or more. Neither supply nor demand affected them that early, thus why I said "not yet" Depending on how much gas they had on hand, they may not feel the affect for a week. Most of the problems (as someone mentioned) are self fullfilling prophecy because people are panicking. Once gas stations pay the higher prices from the distributers, then I understand they need to recoup their cost and be profitable. Up until then they are just profiteering. That was the only point I was trying to make.

 

[boston_kevin]

Sean - Don't get me wrong, I understand your point, and I am not trying to jump at you... The storm hit on Monday, and on Wednesday (approximately 48 hours after the first storm surge) gas prices increased. I am sure that some people raised prices to make a profit off of this, and hopefully they will be prosecuted accordingly (although not likely). Both during and immediately after the storm, the largest force ever mobiized by the Red Cross was en-route to the southeast. The second largest National Guard troop mobilized to rescue people and prevent looting. One of the largest press contingents mobilized on the area like mosquitoes trying to be the first with "the scoop". Gas stations can only hold approximately 10,000 gallons of gas in each underground tank. That's approximately 1500 cars that can fill up before the station is empty. With the mass evacuations and the entourage en-route to the southeast, it wouldn't take long to deplete a large number of gas stations in the area.

 

[greasefingers]

This is a GREAT link

http://money.howstuffworks.com/gas-price.htm

 

[JB.]

Not only that, but the price of crude is for delivery in the future, so the gas today was crude bought at, say, $50/bbl a couple of months ago, yet the refinery is making today's prices on gasoline.

Don't forget the flip side of that. Often the future sales price is less than expected compared to the purchase price.

 

[JB.]

Until the oil companies build more refining capacity in addition to re-building their Gulf Coast locations we are all in for high fuel prices. Since the oil companies have been raking in record profits I seriously doubt they will build more refineries because that would cost them money and with the higher supply prices could go down.

They're dying to build more refineries. They'd love to drill more oil. It's the political enviroment held hostage to extreme environmentalism that prevents it. The same "envirommentalists" who are responsible for billions of tons of burned coal in the atmoshpere over the last two decades due to pressure against new nuclear power construction. The irony index is at an all-time high.

 

[JB.]

Really? There has been no increase in demand, nor decrease in supply one day after the hurricane hit. Not yet anyway. This is short term profiteering, no better than the looters down south. Just a fact... not a conspiracy theory.

OK. I can't teach an economics class online. One point, though, for your consideration. Supply and demand work in the future as much as in present time.

 

[Kanab]

Boy did I get lucky I'm moving 1300 miles the day after labor day. 26 ft. truck with all my stuff, a cargo van driven by my wife with all my animals and my 4runner driven by a friend. Then I get to drive the cargo van back 1300 miles and then I get to drive my wifes 350Z 1300 miles to the new place. So I figure that equals about 6500 miles of driving in the next 2 weeks. Lets see at 10 mpg that works out to 650 gallons of fuel. So when it was $2 per gallon it would of cost me $1300, at $4 per gallon it costs me another $1300. Not good.

 

[JB.]

Boy did I get lucky I'm moving 1300 miles the day after labor day. 26 ft. truck with all my stuff, a cargo van driven by my wife with all my animals and my 4runner driven by a friend. Then I get to drive the cargo van back 1300 miles and then I get to drive my wifes 350Z 1300 miles to the new place. So I figure that equals about 6500 miles of driving in the next 2 weeks. Lets see at 10 mpg that works out to 650 gallons of fuel. So when it was $2 per gallon it would of cost me $1300, at $4 per gallon it costs me another $1300. Not good.

Yikes. In a competition I'm sure you'd rather not win, you've got me beat by a mile. I've got a 3 week driving trip planned and set with reservations etc. comin' up in two weeks. Looking at the bright side, the high prices, if left alone, should adjust the demand enough to prevent any significant shortages.

 

[IIIBradIII]

Boy did I get lucky I'm moving 1300 miles the day after labor day. 26 ft. truck with all my stuff, a cargo van driven by my wife with all my animals and my 4runner driven by a friend. Then I get to drive the cargo van back 1300 miles and then I get to drive my wifes 350Z 1300 miles to the new place. So I figure that equals about 6500 miles of driving in the next 2 weeks. Lets see at 10 mpg that works out to 650 gallons of fuel. So when it was $2 per gallon it would of cost me $1300, at $4 per gallon it costs me another $1300. Not good.

Sorry to go OT here but dude! Get yourself a dolly and pull your wife's Nissan behind the box truck - they rent those things one-way you know. Both UHaul & Penske will do that - we've used them both before.

 

[Kanab]

Sorry to go OT here but dude! Get yourself a dolly and pull your wife's Nissan behind the box truck - they rent those things one-way you know. Both UHaul & Penske will do that - we've used them both before.

4runner is to heavy and the 350Z with 18 inch wheels won't work either. Trust me I checked. Plus I have to drive the cargo van back since no rental company will rent them one way. So I would just have to fly back to Vegas and my wife would have to drive 6 hours round trip to pick me up. I even checked on a car transport company but they wanted $1000. No good solutions.

 

[charlier180]

Boy did I get lucky I'm moving 1300 miles the day after labor day. 26 ft. truck with all my stuff, a cargo van driven by my wife with all my animals and my 4runner driven by a friend. Then I get to drive the cargo van back 1300 miles and then I get to drive my wifes 350Z 1300 miles to the new place. So I figure that equals about 6500 miles of driving in the next 2 weeks. Lets see at 10 mpg that works out to 650 gallons of fuel. So when it was $2 per gallon it would of cost me $1300, at $4 per gallon it costs me another $1300. Not good.

I would imagine that a moving company would have cost you more than the $2600 for fuel plus the rental fees for the truck and cargo van? I guess the animals would not have fit in the 4Runner with you and the wife towing her 350Z on an open trailer?

Anyway, good luck with the move and be SAFE.

 

[tcpoob]

metro boston. many gas stations here today sell 87 octane for about $3.10 to $3.60. i paid $2.55/gal past Sunday. This very station is asking $3.40. Got it at $2.90 from a Mobile finally.

Unbelievable.

 

[boston_kevin]

They were talking about the private stations may be out of luck soon until the supply increases. Top-tier gas stations (Shell, Mobil, Exxon) have nationwide contracts that have to be honored. The little private gas dealers (the mom and pop stores) may be declined when they order gas...

Just something to keep in mind during the travel weekend. Look for bigger name gas stations.

 

[azskyrider]

Increase in goods and services?

With the increase in prices for gas I am expecting an increase in goods and services to be happening here soon. It is going to cost a company more money to ship or service a product which would mean that the extra cost would have to be passed on to the consumer.

Look at the airlines. An increase in fuel price and they increase ticket prices.

 

[Bluto]

Gas stations in my area are running out of gas. Now the fun begins.

 

[charlier180]

Re: Increase in goods and services?

The company I work for uses Common Carriers (ie Trucking Companies) to ship a certain percentage of our products. All this week many of our usual Common Carriers have informed us that they have no rigs available. Their rigs and drivers have either been hired out to assist in the relief effort or have been loaned out/donated to that effort. It is great that these companies are helping. Hopefully all of their help will not be needed long term or freight prices will climb due to supply/demand. In any case, consumer good are sure to see price increases. It is only a matter of time until we see how much and when.