Cheapest ever fill up

[RandallNeighbour]

I filled up my 26 gallon F150 for half price last time. Holy cow the price of fuel is cheap right now.

Sadly, I will have friends and neighbors out of work by March with the price of oil this low. Oil and Gas provides a broad basis for our local economy here in Sauna City, USA (Houston).

This means that today we talk about cheap fuel prices in Houston. Tomorrow we will be talking about how cheaply we can buy a house!

[patssle]

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

This means that today we talk about cheap fuel prices in Houston. Tomorrow we will be talking about how cheaply we can buy a house!

That's what I'm keeping my eye on. If some of these housing prices crash way out in the suburbs....might be a good investing opportunity!

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

I filled up my 26 gallon F150 for half price last time. Holy cow the price of fuel is cheap right now.

Sadly, I will have friends and neighbors out of work by March with the price of oil this low. Oil and Gas provides a broad basis for our local economy here in Sauna City, USA (Houston).

This means that today we talk about cheap fuel prices in Houston. Tomorrow we will be talking about how cheaply we can buy a house!

They will be on nothing more than a temporary lay off.

[Porsche9]

Friday I filled the Boxster up for $27. Cheap.

I do remember filling up for $1 a gallon back in the late 80's. Prices have alway gone up and down pretty dramatically. I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

[Giller]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

They will be on nothing more than a temporary lay off.

Not necessarily. There is a lot of talk that oil could go down down down much more. If that's the case, it could cause a lot of grief to both the US and Canadian economies. If oil prices fall too much - it just won't be cost effective to get the oil out of the ground - will be cheaper to bring it in from overseas.

It's sad - but we actually need oil prices at a 'higher' level for the good of the whole economy. (not crazy high, just high enough to make it profitable).

When people talk about those low oil prices and cheap gas - remember, that oil all came from the middle east. So we can go back to depending on them for our oil or we can pay a bit more for it and dig it up here.

[woodsman]

Originally Posted by Giller

Not necessarily. There is a lot of talk that oil could go down down down much more. If that's the case, it could cause a lot of grief to both the US and Canadian economies. If oil prices fall too much - it just won't be cost effective to get the oil out of the ground - will be cheaper to bring it in from overseas.

It's sad - but we actually need oil prices at a 'higher' level for the good of the whole economy. (not crazy high, just high enough to make it profitable).

When people talk about those low oil prices and cheap gas - remember, that oil all came from the middle east. So we can go back to depending on them for our oil or we can pay a bit more for it and dig it up here.

OK and where does GREED come into the equation? I mean since when does oil 'JUST have to make a profit'?

[woodsman]

I heard it said () that OPEC was doing this to get rid of the frackers.

[nicecar]

Did you really do doughnuts in our reliable but not durable cars?

[Porsche9]

Originally Posted by nicecar

did you really do doughnuts in our reliable but not durable cars?

That's funny.

[nicecar]

Originally Posted by nicecar

Did you really do doughnuts in our reliable but not durable cars?

still wondering

[Giller]

Originally Posted by woodsman

OK and where does GREED come into the equation? I mean since when does oil 'JUST have to make a profit'?

Greed? It's called fiscal responsibility. If it costs more to pull oil out of the ground than what you can sell it for - that's a bad business and will soon be bankrupt.

You don't work for free, so neither will these companies.

[mnc-i]

I filled up with 93 Octane yesterday for $2.01 per gallon.

I don't blame the politicians when gasoline is $4.00 per gallon and I don't blame them when it is $1.70 per gallon.

Enjoy it while you can.

MNC-I

[woodsman]

OPEC is flexing, smiling and completely relaxed. Politicians are nervous...

[mountainman]

Originally Posted by Giller

Greed? It's called fiscal responsibility. If it costs more to pull oil out of the ground than what you can sell it for - that's a bad business and will soon be bankrupt.

You don't work for free, so neither will these companies.

Look at exon's profits over the years...they make a lot of fiscal responsibility.

[Giller]

Originally Posted by mountainman

Look at exon's profits over the years...they make a lot of fiscal responsibility.

A perfect example of Capitalism in action. And everyone who complains about it should either A) move to Russia or B) wise up and buy some stock!

We can all benefit from these companies profits - that's another thing that makes our countries great.

[coreseller]

Originally Posted by mountainman

Look at exon's profits over the years...they make a lot of fiscal responsibility.

Exxon Mobile's margins are right at or below 10% of revenue, pretty low actually compared to most Fortune 500 companies. Apple's margins are at 27%, are you mad at them?

Exxon also employs over 75,000 people at above average compensation levels.

Hating on "Big Oil" is pretty cliche, as others have stated best to join in the profits by purchasing their stock. You probably already have some if invested in mutual funds.

There is currently a 2 million plus barrels a day surplus in production, prices will likely continue to decline and stay low for the first half of '15.

For the accountant types:

Diving deeper

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by Giller

Not necessarily. There is a lot of talk that oil could go down down down much more. If that's the case, it could cause a lot of grief to both the US and Canadian economies. If oil prices fall too much - it just won't be cost effective to get the oil out of the ground - will be cheaper to bring it in from overseas.

It's sad - but we actually need oil prices at a 'higher' level for the good of the whole economy. (not crazy high, just high enough to make it profitable).

When people talk about those low oil prices and cheap gas - remember, that oil all came from the middle east. So we can go back to depending on them for our oil or we can pay a bit more for it and dig it up here.

That's all it is talk. Oil prices will be back up because lower prices globally will lift aggregate consumption. Some analysts project a half point increase in global GDP from ~$50 oil. The longer these low prices stick the more consumption of just about everything will pick up (the best stimulus there is for the U.S. consumer) which of course shifts the all important expectation of demand back in a bullish direction. Global production was exceeding actual demand even back when oil was pinned above $100. Yet the prices would not budge! Evidently the speculators expected demand in the faster growing economies to keep plowing ahead despite the excess production.
Obviously they don't expect that to be the case in the near term anymore but you can't stop countries with low debt, growing populations, easy access to capital, and improving infrastructures to just grind to a halt forever. The expectation of demand can turn on a dime. I remember in 2008 or there abouts when oil prices shot north in the middle of the trading day because some news site reported a gun boat battle in the Gulf... that happened two days prior.

Originally Posted by thstone

I think a more accurate statement is that the rich are getting richer by leaps and bounds as the truly poor merely inch upwards over time.

The bottom line is that everyone, rich and poor alike, get richer each year (but by differing amounts).

I believe that the middle class are actually getting poorer when you factor in all their long-term commitments and their higher expected household contributions. For instance, the savings rate in America is still barely 1-2% but the cost of just about everything but oil is rising. Unless the typical American has some portion of their savings in aggressive investments, (that ends well) this math of what's coming in vs. what's going out doesn't really add up over the course of a working life. I'm not sure how any growth in net worth can be expected running a household deficit and the fact that people are no longer getting rich from owning their homes. Wage increases for the majority haven't been anything to write home about since we were putting people on the moon.
Agree on the wealthy. This is about the best time ever to be an investor. Low taxes relative to just about every other advanced economy, plenty of corporate global growth to see your LTCG rise indefinitely.

[Giller]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

That's all it is talk. Oil prices will be back up because lower prices globally will lift aggregate consumption. Some analysts project a half point increase in global GDP from ~$50 oil. The longer these low prices stick the more consumption of just about everything will pick up (the best stimulus there is for the U.S. consumer) which of course shifts the all important expectation of demand back in a bullish direction. Global production was exceeding actual demand even back when oil was pinned above $100. Yet the prices would not budge! Evidently the speculators expected demand in the faster growing economies to keep plowing ahead despite the excess production.
Obviously they don't expect that to be the case in the near term anymore but you can't stop countries with low debt, growing populations, easy access to capital, and improving infrastructures to just grind to a halt forever. The expectation of demand can turn on a dime. I remember in 2008 or there abouts when oil prices shot north in the middle of the trading day because some news site reported a gun boat battle in the Gulf... that happened two days prior.

I read a ton of 'articles' relating to mutual funds and the stock market, and of course Oil is heavily mentioned. For every article I read saying oil is going up, I can find one that says it's going down. A lot of 'conspiracy theories' out there - the biggest being that oil is being forced down in price in an attempt to cripple Russia economically. Others think the mid east is pushing prices down to hurt US production. Many experts claim it's about China and how their growth has stabilized and therefore demand is down big time. At the end of the day, it's a whole bunch of speculation - and you might be very right and it'll shoot back up - or my gut might be right and it keeps going down. Either way, there is money to be made in the markets right now - just might be a bit longer term.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by Giller

I read a ton of 'articles' relating to mutual funds and the stock market, and of course Oil is heavily mentioned. For every article I read saying oil is going up, I can find one that says it's going down. A lot of 'conspiracy theories' out there - the biggest being that oil is being forced down in price in an attempt to cripple Russia economically. Others think the mid east is pushing prices down to hurt US production. Many experts claim it's about China and how their growth has stabilized and therefore demand is down big time. At the end of the day, it's a whole bunch of speculation - and you might be very right and it'll shoot back up - or my gut might be right and it keeps going down. Either way, there is money to be made in the markets right now - just might be a bit longer term.

If you are talking about actively managed mutual funds, I would use their articles for bird cage liner. 99% of those guys missed the obvious as the Sun economic collapse in the first place. You didn't need to be a genius to see the lend-to-securitize frenzy of everything and the kitchen sink. When your investment firm misses something that big I no longer trust your ability to predict anything. The best articles are those that predict nothing and simply tell you what has changed. Armed with that, you'll be as good at predicting as they have ever been. And any conspiracy theorists that think they can assemble a group to move the price of a commodity like crude down 50% have to change the tin foil on their hats. The expectation of demand is a global soup that no one group or group of nations can manipulate. Those days are long gone.

[Giller]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

I believe that the middle class are actually getting poorer when you factor in all their long-term commitments and their higher expected household contributions. For instance, the savings rate in America is still barely 1-2% but the cost of just about everything but oil is rising. Unless the typical American has some portion of their savings in aggressive investments, (that ends well) this math of what's coming in vs. what's going out doesn't really add up over the course of a working life. I'm not sure how any growth in net worth can be expected running a household deficit and the fact that people are no longer getting rich from owning their homes. Wage increases for the majority haven't been anything to write home about since we were putting people on the moon.
Agree on the wealthy. This is about the best time ever to be an investor. Low taxes relative to just about every other advanced economy, plenty of corporate global growth to see your LTCG rise indefinitely.

I missed this part earlier. I would counter that the savings rate is irrelevant and history shows that the savings rate closely matches the inflation rate and therefore, you never actually 'make money' in a savings account-type investment. And then factor in taxes on that income, you actually have less buying power. Higher rates typically mean higher inflation and therefore nullify those high rates.
You definitely have a point on the house aspect. People are now carrying mortgages well into retirement - something that didn't happen even 10 years ago. Therefore people now have to work longer into what normally would be their retirement, which can have a huge impact on a person's stress levels and therefore overall health.
I still argue a portfolio filled with a variety of blue-chip, dividend paying stocks will provide you the best return over the long term, with a small portion in savings to cover those emergencies. (don't want to have to cash out if the markets are down) The key of course is not panicking and selling when the markets go down. That's when you buy!