What is going to happen with crude? Two sessions ago, black gold dropped 7% to trade in the $35 region. Yesterday, crude hovered near break even. Today, we have the weekly crude inventory report -- which should have a modicum of impact on crude's price.

What I find interesting is the fact that we haven't seen the relief at the pump yet. I know that the Cushing, OK reserve is fully stocked and some of the crude sent to the stations is still from a time when black gold was worth more. But we have to be getting close to the $35-per-barrel stuff, right? I know right now I pay roughly $2 per gallon -- and I know, I should quit whining, but still....

Continue reading A look at oil ahead of inventory reports

A look at oil ahead of inventory reports originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This oil trade takes the cake.

At the zenith of the speculative bubble in the oil patch -- when crude hit $147 per barrel in July -- you had everyone from T. Boone Pickens to Prince Alaweed touting $200-per-barrel oil by the end of the year.

Crude is now trading around $40 -- down $107 per barrel in less than six months. Unbelievable!

And this latest drop comes after OPEC voted to cut daily production by an eye-popping 4.2 billion barrels per day.

Looks like the world is awash in crude oil.

Needless to say, those euphoric longs in the oil stocks got destroyed. Most energy stocks lost 50% to 70% of their value during the course of the sell-off in crude.

And remember those television commercials with T. Boone and Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) CEO Aubrey McClendon pushing for the expansion of natural gas?

Well, natural gas prices are down 60% from their mid-year highs.

If you put money into T. Boone's Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) as recently as September, when the stock was trading at $20, you now own Mr. Pickens' vision for $5.

Continue reading 2008 Trades Gone Bad #5: The peak oil trade

2008 Trades Gone Bad #5: The peak oil trade originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Dec 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Future crude oil supplies may be a lot tighter than thought. That is what the International Energy Agency in Paris is expected to find when it releases its assessment of the world's 400 major oil fields in November, according to the Wall Street Journal, a reversal from previous reports and is based on a lack of investment and aging oil fields.
• The Institute for Safe Medication Practices, a nonprofit safety organization, found serious side effects linked to Pfizer Inc's (NYSE: PFE) Chantix, a smoking cessation drug. Chantix, which has been banned by the FAA for use by pilots and air-traffic controllers, is already tied to psychiatric issues, including depression and suicide, according to the Wall Street Journal, and the report also points to heart trouble, seizures and diabetes.

• The New York Times reported that the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Fund has accused American International Group Inc (NYSE: AIG), along with several of its executives, of inflating its stock price artificially by understating the company's exposure to the subprime mortgage crisis. According to the lawsuit, AIG's Q1 loss of $7.8B shocked investors because the insurance giant assured them that any losses on credit insurance "would be limited".
• Following speculation a Chinese entity would look to take a stake in Australian miner BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE: BHP), Huang Tianwen, the president of Sinosteel Corp, said the company has not formed a bid for the firm. The Australian reported that Chinese steel mills may look to buy into iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group.

Newspaper wrap-up: Pfizer's anti-smoking medicine under scrutiny originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 May 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Reports suggesting a sluggish U.S. economy
• Concerns that the subprime mortgage woes are spreading into different areas in the market
• Jobless claims have been on the rise
• Disappointing July retail numbers
• Ongoing uncertainty over supply coming out of the Middle East

Continue reading Oil prices continue to feel pain

Oil prices continue to feel pain originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 10 Aug 2007 09:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.