gas prices posts
FeedPosted Aug 3rd 2009 4:20PM by Joseph Lazzaro (RSS feed)
Filed under: Bad news, Oil

So much for the break for U.S. motorists at the gas pump. Gasoline prices have rebounded about 10 cents in the last week alone, to an average unleaded regular price of $2.54 per gallon, according to data compiled by
gasbuddy.com.
U.S. motorists had hoped for a gas price decline of about 30 cents on oil's plunge from $72 per barrel to $57 per barrel earlier this summer. It did not happen. The price of oil didn't remain lower long enough, with gasoline dropping only about 15-20 cents per gallon across the nation, before rebounding in late July.
Continue reading No relief for U.S. drivers: Oil jumps above $70
Posted Jul 14th 2009 4:45PM by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed)
Filed under: Wal-Mart (WMT), Target Corp. (TGT), Abercrombie and Fitch (ANF), Economic data, American Eagle Outfitters (AEO)
Last summer we lamented the price of gas. This year, however, there's at least one upside. Retail sales for June were up 0.6% - substantially better than the 0.4% anticipated – with the gas prices leading the charge. A slight tip in the brutalized auto manufacturer sector helped, as well. This was the largest retail sales increase in five months.
Gas stations benefited from the cost of fuel, adding a bit of pep to a beleaguered retail industry: sales were up 5% year over year, after doing the same in May. And, car dealers had their best month since January: the sales of cars and parts climbed 2.3%. Nonetheless, this corner of the retail world is still off 14.5% from last year. It may have helped last month, but we're still pretty far from a cure.
Continue reading Gas prices drive retail sales rebound, coveted brands still struggle
Posted Jun 1st 2009 3:20PM by Michael Fowlkes (RSS feed)
Filed under: Major movement, International markets, Forecasts, Consumer experience, China, Middle East, Economic data, Oil, Recession, Financial Crisis

Oil prices are picking up right where they
left off on Friday, gaining another $1.72 a barrel, up to $68.03. We noted last week that a big reason oil has been moving so high lately was increased in optimism in the overall American economy.
Two more indicators showed up today that have really got Wall Street betting on continued rising oil costs. The first is a weakening of the dollar, and the second would be signs that manufacturing is strengthening once more in China. Both of these indicators were major reasons why we saw oil spike to record levels last summer, and their emergence now could signal that oil could continue heading higher.
Continue reading Another strong move for oil prices
Posted May 29th 2009 5:40PM by Michael Fowlkes (RSS feed)
Filed under: International markets, Forecasts, Consumer experience, Middle East, Market matters, Oil, Recession, Financial Crisis

There is still much debate taking place as to whether or America is close to coming out of its current recession, but you would not know it by watching oil prices over the past few months. Today was no exception, with
prices moving above $66 barrel as we head into the weekend.
It seems like a long time ago that oil prices were hovering down in the low $30's, but it was not all that long ago... just five months to be exact. As oil has been rising, so have gasoline prices. It is easy to view the current gas prices as "cheap", considering where we were this time last year, but you have probably already noticed a nice jump in what you are paying these days.
Continue reading Oil closes out the week strong
Posted May 15th 2009 7:00PM by Michael Fowlkes (RSS feed)
Filed under: International markets, Forecasts, Consumer experience, Middle East, Oil, Recession
When we took a look at oil prices last Friday oil was hitting a new 6 month high, and we noted that we could be seeing $60 oil by the end of this week. We did indeed see oil hitting $60 this week, but today prices took a hit, dropping back down under $57 a barrel.
The main reason prices retreated today was in reaction to disappointing news on retail sales, unemployment, and more bad news from the housing market. Oil has dropped $2.10 a barrel today to $56.52, and some analysts think that it still has a way to go before stabilizing.
Continue reading Oil prices dip on economic concerns
Posted Jan 26th 2009 12:12PM by Sheldon Liber (RSS feed)
Filed under: Forecasts, Exxon Mobil (XOM), Chevron Corp (CVX), ConocoPhillips (COP), BP p.l.c. ADS (BP), Anadarko Petroleum (APC), Serious Money, Oil

Oil prices have come down over $100 a barrel in the last six months, and so have oil stocks. How many people out there would have lost their house, not due to the reasons we've become accustomed, but due to betting the wrong way on oil? How many out there thought oil would stay near $147 a barrel rather than drop to the mid $30s in six months? I admit I might have been one of those people. Oil is currently trading in the mid $40s.
I have been paying about $2 a gallon for premium gasoline in Southern California -- sometimes a little higher, sometimes a little lower -- but a far cry from the $4.85 I paid in the summer. I can't even believe my eyes or my wallet relief. Five dollar gas is but a memory. We should all keep that in mind because we all know it is coming back to a gas station near you. We just don't know when.
This week's cover story in
Barron's,
"Big Oil's a Buy" (subscription required), highlights seven companies with varying degrees of support. The author, Dimitra Defotis, discusses companies with depressed stock prices, which may go lower; and with: relatively solid dividends; the possibility that mergers and acquisitions might be on the horizon; and stock buy-backs options. The four key stocks Defotis likes are XOM, TOT, BP and PBR. For example, XOM was chosen because of superior management and stacks of cash; PBR because of its reserves. Defotis questions the debt levels and access to new reserves of COP and RDS.
Continue reading Serious Money: Barron's pumping oil again!
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