Who is really to blame for high gas prices?
There are two Arco gas stations that consistently have the lowest prices in Long Beach other that Costco.
One is at Bellflower and Atherton, the other is on Anaheim a block west of Ximeno.
At those two stations:
On February 22 the price for regular was $4.259.
On February 26 the price for regular was $4.299.
On March 1 the price for regular was $4.499
On March 5 the price for regular was $4.999.
On March 8 the price for regular was $5.259.
The math on this is very simple. That's a one dollar increase in two weeks, which works out to a 23.5% increase.
As of February 21, per [energy.ca.gov], $2.22 of that was for crude oil costs.
Per [oilprice.com] the price of West Texas Intermediate Crude was $91.91 on February 22. As of March 8 it was $123.70, for an increase of $31.79 or 34.6%.
You may be thinking, "Hey, the price of crude went up 34.6% and the price at the pump only went up 23.5%, where's the problem?"
Let me explain. That 34.6% increase in the price of crude did not have any impact on the cost of refining, distribution, marketing, etc*. It only effected the $2.22 cost of the crude. That meant that the cost of the crude went to $2.99, or an increase of $0.77 per gallon.
In the mean time, the price at the pump was up a full dollar. At least 20% of that dollar increase was nothing but pure price gouging.
The Republicans want to blame Biden. Biden wants to blame Putin.
They are all blaming the wrong president. They should be blaming Susan Dio chairman and president of BP America Inc.
- The "etc." includes "Distribution Costs, Marketing Costs and Profits" and "Refinery Cost and Profit." Those profits are already at record levels.
3
Enjoy being online again!
Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.Create your free account
4 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.And currently they are talking of $AU2.50/ litre in Australia.
FrayedBear
Level 9
Mar 10, 2022
0
High fuel prices are direct result of the policies of the looney idiotic democraps!
Trajan61
Level 8
Mar 9, 2022
1
Apparently you did not read/apprehend the post.
@silverotter11, blaming the Democrats as a knee jerk reaction means he neither has to think, or accept any responsibility for the damage done by his support of the Putin loving traitor, Donald Trump.
@silverotter11 So you don’t believe shutting down pipelines and stopping leasing on federal land has an impact on oil prices. Also over regulating the oil and gas industry.
@Trajan61, that is a lie. The real truth about high gas prices is that Putin wasn't making enough from his oil, so his buddy, Donnie, came to the rescue by forcing the Saudis to cut production. Hence the rise in prices that began just before Trump left office.
It all goes back to Trump being a treasonous Russian tool.
@Trajan61, do you have a clue what you are talking about? Do you have any idea how long it takes to bring an oil field into production? No restriction on drilling put in place by Biden has had time enough to have any effect on the oil supply. Actually, he has released reserve supplies to bring down prices. The oil companies took advantage of the lower market prices as a way to add to their profits, as I have shown.
And what pipeline did Biden shut down that caused an increase in oil prices? Name it and prove it.
Stop pushing BS right wing talking points. Pull your head out of Fox News’ ass.
Everybody loves free market capitalism... until they don't.
ChestRockfield
Level 8
Mar 9, 2022
1
I once did a contract technical software job for Exxon corporate (I know - I'm still ashamed) in Houston. The company set the prices for all the stations.
The team I was on heard about a bitter complaint from one station owner that another station was driving him out of business.
Another Exxon station was so close as to be visible from his but its prices were 5 cents a gallon cheaper. The other station just happened to be on the other side of a boundary on whatever map the executives were using to assign the prices.
You're right -- market forces don't drive the prices.
RichCC
Level 8
Mar 9, 2022
1
Enjoy being online again!
Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.Create your free account
Share this post
Categories
Agnostic does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any content. Read full disclaimer.