Looking ahead I see increasing taxes, increasing health care costs and increasing gas prices.

[dkf]

That doesn't look good for a consumer driven economy.

[msongs]

1. lol the people with the most money don't spend it, they just invest in circular speculation schemes

[FarCenter]

2. The consumer is out of credit

The economy can no longer be "consumer driven".

[tblue]

3. Yeah, oil is over $100 again FOR NO REASON!

They want to squeeze the last drop out of us while there's anything left to squeeze.

[liberal N proud]

4. The reason:

The busy holiday travel season is upon us.

It goes unnoticed cycle after cycle, every time at the holidays, spring break season and the summer, oil prices go up (driven by the speculator), driving gas prices higher.

Those prices ease following those period but not back to the original prices thus creating the boiling frog.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

7. and nevermind those asian economies

that need all that oil. used to be US consumption was the major driving factor...just not true anymore...

sP

[FarCenter]

9. The price of crude oil has been above $100/barrel for most of 2011

The price paid by East Coast, Gulf Coast and West Coast refineries is based on the price for cargos of imported oil. These are generally aligned with the price of Brent. So the great majority of US refineries have been paying over $100/barrel, adjusted for transportation, specific gravity, and sulfur content.

The West Texas Intermediate price, keyed off the exchanges at Cushing OK, has been generally $10 to $15 / barrel lower than Brent. But that price applies to only to Midwestern refineries, and it is lower because of a glut of North Dakota and Alberta oil sands oil coming into Cushing.

Recently, a deal was reached to reverse the flow of the Seaway pipeline between the Gulf and Cushing. Once this is done, the price at Cushing will rise to the world market price. Futures are rising now in anticipation.

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/commodity/brent-crude-oil

[tblue]

14. Thanks. I heard it in the news...

???? I'm not saying they give no justification. I'm just saying there is no real reason for raising the price per barrel.

[Spider Jerusalem]

17. Demand is the reason

and the quoted price of a barrel of oil that you see on the US news is not the world market price, it isn't even the price per barrel of most grades of crude oil pumped in the US, it's just West Texas Intermediate--which has been trading at a $10-20 dollar a barrel discount not just to North Sea Brent crude but to Louisiana Light Sweet and Alaska North Slope crude oils. The price per barrel is NOT actually going up, because the actual price for a barrel of oil has never been as low as the distorted West Texas Intermediate market price (because WTI represents an insignificant fraction of US oil production, and the US imports most of the oil it uses).

[doc03]

15. Right from the horse's mouth, May 12, 2012 Exxon Exec

says oil should be priced at $60-70 a barrel based on the price to produce and market the product. It sounds to me like anything over that is just driven by speculation. The way I understand it from the Senator and the Exxon exec only about 30% of the traders have anything to do with the actual oil market the other 70% of it is driven by pure speculation.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LY420_U4U0I

[FarCenter]

21. That might be Exxon's cost, but cost has little to do with price

One of the first rules of business is that you price a product on the amount that the customer is willing to pay, taking into account the prices being charged by your competitors.

Most of the world's crude supply is produced and/or controlled by national oil companies of the oil exporting countries. They price their oil based not on the cost to produce but also on their need for revenue to sustain their national budgets.

[CJCRANE]

5. It depends who is taxed more

by how much and how that money is spent.

The Clinton Era had higher tax rates but was pretty good for job creation and consumer confidence.

[CreekDog]

6. If you want no tax increases, have the courage to say so

have courage and state what you actually think.

[dkf]

8. No I want the Bush tax cut rescinded for the good of the country.

But for my own pocketbook I am realizing maybe these are the best of times. That's pretty depressing.

[FarLeftFist]

10. Time to start Nationalizing shit and creating a stable economy.

[dkf]

11. If they started with healthcare I could go with that.

[Donnachaidh]

12. uhh, aside from the taxes, that's already BEEN happening

of course, it's still fearmongering even if you've not been paying attention. :rofl:

[dkf]

18. I'm just thinking that things aren't getting better.

I've been looking at real estate for the last 7 years thinking that it was too much of a bubble. Now it's at levels that are semi affordable and mortgage rates are as low as they will ever be but I don't know if it's a good idea or not knowing that expenses will be going up.

What to do.

[theophilus]

13. I'm glad YOU said that! Now I feel much better about the future. n/t

[savalez]

16. How far you lookin?

In the long term that's true no matter what. :)

But I know what you mean. Here's my take on that.

Higher taxes: Good if the right people pay them (Corporations, super wealthy)

Increasing Health Care Costs: Bad all around.

Increasing Gas Prices: Torn. When fuel prices go up so does everything else. Good for the environment if it translates into people buying smaller, more efficient vehicles.

[dkf]

19. 30 year mortgage.

[SpiralHawk]

20. Increasing food costs

coming soon to a pantry and refrigerator near your kitchen table