Posted on 08/08/2005 8:20:52 AM PDT by newgeezer
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The largest sports betting site on the Internet expanded Friday into the energy arena, offering gamblers a chance to bet on soaring U.S. retail gasoline prices.
"Record gasoline prices are affecting everyone, so why not let people bet on it?" said PinnacleSports.com spokesman Kyle Fratini. "We've been thinking about this for months."
The online betting site, which normally focuses on mainstream sports like football, basketball and soccer, is giving gamblers a chance to bet on whether gasoline will reach $3.00 a gallon in New York or Los Angeles by the end of the year, with 30 to 1 odds.
On Friday, average gasoline prices in Los Angeles were a lofty $2.616 a gallon, up more than 20 percent from last year and among the highest in the nation, according to the AAA's daily survey.
AAA's survey will be used by PinnacleSports.com as the benchmark for its bets.
Nationwide, gasoline prices are zipping along just over $2.30 a gallon, within 2 cents of the record peak hit July 14, as oil refiners are forced to pay up for record world crude oil prices of over $60 a barrel.
Also up for wager: Will the average price of gas in the United States reach $2.35 per gallon by Labor Day? Will the average price of gas in the U.S. reach $2.40 per gallon by the end of the year?
Fratini said maximum bets on gasoline will be around $500, though the site allows for bets in the thousands of dollars for sports like football.
Forgot to say it was $2.689 per gallon.
Those states that have to pay for heating oil in the winter will be hurt worse.
As long as there's no rationing, who cares?
< /sarcasm >
Which will be lower than people think. Remember, both India and China have started to impose excise taxes on less fuel-efficient cars, which will encourage Indian and Chinese citizens to buy more fuel-efficient cars (the Honda Fit, which started to be assembled in China in 2004, has become a hot seller there).
Gas is $2.29 here.
It is freaky how unleaded PREMIUM is a few bucks cheaper than regular.
It won't hit 3 bucks here, but it may in LA if it goes to $2.45 or so here.
That is what you get for living in California.
yeah, outlying prices at a few stations do not count when most would not get their gas their anyway since the prices are 15 cents higher than surrounding areas.
"Where is the legislation we hear is coming to enable U.S. lands drilling in ANWAR and elsewhere???? Screw OPEC. The U.S. needs to minimize OPEC oil need NOW!!!"
I moved to the states a short time ago after spending 30 years in Alaska, '73-'03. You would really have to look hard up there to find ANYONE, native or white who is opposed to drilling in ANWAR. The main obstructionists are people who have never been there and have no idea what it is like other than the phony photos they see from "save the wilderness" morons. One of the favorite Alaskan bumper stickers for years has been one that reads: "Please God, grant us another pipeline. We promise not to piss it all away this time."
You will have to do your research, I remember listening to Richerson on eithe meet the press or fox during the last year of the clinton era. Little was ever said but I am sure a lexus/nexus or detailed search would uncover it.
Because they'd price themselves out of the market as people find new ways to use less of it. That's why.
When investors start getting hurt by it, then Congress will say, "gee I think we might have to look into the gas prices."
It seems you're saying the rise in gasoline prices is just a conspiracy by big oil.
We are approaching the point....maybe just 10 cents from now.....where the gas price really is inflated. Until now, supply and demand were just working their forces and gas was just getting more in line with what we should be paying with price increases/CPI index increase over the years etc. We were living with extremely below-price gas for a long time.
If we don't hit $3 in the heartland this year for gas, we may do it next year....the gas just keeps going up with every year.
Congress will fight that tooth and nail. If the government admits that gas prices are really starting to hurt, then they will have to admit the this years CFI is total baloney (much like every years).
Do that and the whole house of cards might just fall in.
They don't have any electricity in Iraq, to run anything.
Eventually, alternative forms of energy will come about once folks have had enough, but it will take awhile.
Most people in a survey on the news said they would not start driving less until about $2.80-3.00 or so.
Oh really.. well you can look for raising food prices coming your way soon, the higher fuel coast the higher everything else goes.
Does anyone know how much a gallon of regular would be without any taxes?
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