• Welcome to AlpineZone, the largest online community of skiers and snowboarders in the Northeast!

    You may have to REGISTER before you can post. Registering is FREE, gets rid of the majority of advertisements, and lets you participate in giveaways and other AlpineZone events!

Gas Price

How do you pay for gas?

  • Cash

    Votes: 8 11.9%
  • Credit

    Votes: 34 50.7%
  • Debit

    Votes: 22 32.8%
  • Check

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Other

    Votes: 3 4.5%

  • Total voters
    67

ski_resort_observer

Active member
Joined
Dec 26, 2004
Messages
3,423
Points
38
Location
Waitsfield,Vt
Website
www.firstlightphotographics.com
It's that number right there that puts speculators in my cross hairs. Did they honestly believe the economic crash was going to drive demand for oil down to less than 50% of what was needed during the prior summer when the price was $4.09?

Just seems to be far too wild a swing for normal supply/demand forces. Maybe I'm wrong

It was an amazing drop in a short amount of time. Personally, I have yet to hear a logical explanation. I do know there are always several factors in any price change, not just the futures market.
 

ctenidae

Active member
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
8,959
Points
38
Location
SW Connecticut
It was an amazing drop in a short amount of time. Personally, I have yet to hear a logical explanation. I do know there are always several factors in any price change, not just the futures market.

Everything dropped at the same time- spot prices as well as futures. It was a case of no one buying anythign at all, and assuming they wouldn't for a long time. Inventories that had piled up were getting used, instead.
 

Abubob

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
3,531
Points
63
Location
Alexandria, NH
Website
tee.pub
Of course I remember filling my 10 gal tank on my Corrolla for $5.00 but also remember paying $2.00 per gallon $25.00 for a tank and thinking I won't be able to afford it much longer. Ah those halcyon days of so long ago!
 

ctenidae

Active member
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
8,959
Points
38
Location
SW Connecticut
I'm daydreaming about compressed natural gas bi-fuel conversion with a compressor in my garage.

Apparently, the state of NC is now requiring that all of their small engine equipment (mowers, weedeaters, etc etc) be converted to propane canisters.
 

ctenidae

Active member
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
8,959
Points
38
Location
SW Connecticut
Article in Bloomberg showed an analysis (can't remember who did it) that said every 1 cent rise in gas prices equates to $1 billion in consumer spending redirected from retail to gas. I'm not sure how they come to that conclusion, since the US uses an average of 19.8 billion gallons of motor gasoline per year. To my way of mathing, that means $198 million per year per 1 cent change. And that ain't much.
 

Glenn

Active member
Joined
Oct 1, 2008
Messages
7,691
Points
38
Location
CT & VT
Article in Bloomberg showed an analysis (can't remember who did it) that said every 1 cent rise in gas prices equates to $1 billion in consumer spending redirected from retail to gas. I'm not sure how they come to that conclusion, since the US uses an average of 19.8 billion gallons of motor gasoline per year. To my way of mathing, that means $198 million per year per 1 cent change. And that ain't much.

I saw that too. I think it was the same issue that had the economics of buying a hybrid. And how a 40mpg gasoline engine is a better value.
 

Geoff

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 30, 2004
Messages
5,100
Points
48
Location
South Dartmouth, Ma
I saw that too. I think it was the same issue that had the economics of buying a hybrid. And how a 40mpg gasoline engine is a better value.

CNG really makes the most sense for a commuter car. The energy cost is about 1/3 that of gasoline and the country is swimming in natural gas.

You can buy a Honda Civic GX that runs on compressed natural gas for about the same cost as a hybrid. If you have city gas at your house, you can install a compressor for about $4,000. My NStar cost is equivalent to about $1.00 per gallon. In eastern Massachusetts, there are quite a few filling stations though the cost is double what you pay at home if you own your own compressor.

GM is coming out with a bi-fuel Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra pickup next month. Dodge has a bi-fuel Ram 2500 pickup coming out this summer. It makes a ton of sense as a work vehicle.
 

riverc0il

New member
Joined
Jul 10, 2001
Messages
13,039
Points
0
Location
Ashland, NH
Website
www.thesnowway.com
Article in Bloomberg showed an analysis (can't remember who did it) that said every 1 cent rise in gas prices equates to $1 billion in consumer spending redirected from retail to gas. I'm not sure how they come to that conclusion, since the US uses an average of 19.8 billion gallons of motor gasoline per year. To my way of mathing, that means $198 million per year per 1 cent change. And that ain't much.
I just don't see how they come up with that crap. Maybe those on super tight budgets or poor are changing their spending habits. But a good part of the country that isn't living pay check to pay check and has reasonably good finances are not adjusting their spending habits due to paying an extra buck or two at the pump for fuel. I know where they are going with this but I think the more likely result is the money is coming from not saving or perhaps not paying down debts rather than not spending. Or at the very least, the reality lies somewhere in between.
 

AdironRider

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 27, 2005
Messages
3,483
Points
63
I just don't see how they come up with that crap. Maybe those on super tight budgets or poor are changing their spending habits. But a good part of the country that isn't living pay check to pay check and has reasonably good finances are not adjusting their spending habits due to paying an extra buck or two at the pump for fuel. I know where they are going with this but I think the more likely result is the money is coming from not saving or perhaps not paying down debts rather than not spending. Or at the very least, the reality lies somewhere in between.

I believe the figure is every .10 rise in gas prices, not .01.

I think you are right on an emotional level. Most people (I fall into this bracket) havent been hit that hard emotionally with gas. I pay what I need to pay and get on with my day.

That being said, on a strictly economic sense, it makes a big difference. Regardless of where the money was coming from, more money spent on gas is less money spent elsewhere in the economy. We are not a country of savers, so it wasn't that. We are approaching debt levels seen pre-crisis these days. So we havent become savers either.
 

ctenidae

Active member
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Messages
8,959
Points
38
Location
SW Connecticut
Interstingly, it seems that Saudi Arabia is about to send "a wall of oil" at us to cut prices. Not sure how 22 million barrels (2 days of total US imports, 20 or so of Saudi Arabia's typical daily imports) is going to really impact prices, but it couldn't hurt. Of more interest in the article is the reactivation of old fields and increased storage outside of the Middle East. What do they know/worry about Iran that we're not paying attention to?
 
Top