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Commodities plunge?

265 views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  tayndrewsmama 
#1 ·
Has anyone else seen this today? Oil has fallen 38% in two months, $4 (or more) just this morning. They were reporting gas prices at the pump could/should be down to $3 in Fall.
 
#2 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by tayndrewsmama View Post
Has anyone else seen this today? Oil has fallen 38% in two months, $4 (or more) just this morning. They were reporting gas prices at the pump could/should be down to $3 in Fall.
Demand is falling (in the very short term) for oil. But the CRB (Commodity Research Bureau) index, which shows the overall price trends for commodities in general, is spiking up up up.

http://www.crbtrader.com/crbindex/images/crb-b7.gif

Oil will only go down for real if there is a significant sustained decline in demand. In the long term, this could happen if we begin to shift to other sources of power and/or stop using so much. In the short term, this could happen if we don't make a significant change in our economic direction from the policies of the last 8 years, which are leading us as we speak to a depression.

Which presidential candidate do you think could do either of these?
 
#3 ·
Hah! Gas prices sure haven't "fallen" here in HI.I paid 4.19 at one of the cheaper stations and my friend paid 4.09 at Costco a couple of days ago.I'm sure they haven't fallen in CA either since usually they pay as much as we do.I think they tell us that gas prices are dropping to fool us into not complaining.
 
#5 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by crittersmom View Post
Hah! Gas prices sure haven't "fallen" here in HI.I paid 4.19 at one of the cheaper stations and my friend paid 4.09 at Costco a couple of days ago.I'm sure they haven't fallen in CA either since usually they pay as much as we do.I think they tell us that gas prices are dropping to fool us into not complaining.
I believe some of the current price spike is Ike induced as it affected refining capacity (yet I also heard news reports that the govt released oil from the strategic reserve and had imported extra crude in advance of the storm and lifted some rules on refining to make it easier and faster to make gas so WTF?).

Also, I've heard several people espouse the idea that the market has 'decoupled' from the real economy and the stock market has little bearing on reality. Sometimes it certainly seems that way.

There are also those who say oil tanking is the beginning of deflation.

And people who know more than me expected a commodities bounce b/c we all still need food/toilet paper/clothes. I think commodities are considered a good investment right now.

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