Posted on 04/27/2007 5:50:24 PM PDT by shrinkermd
SINGAPORE — Oil prices rose slightly Thursday after a midweek U.S. fuel supplies report showed a large, unexpected drop in gasoline stockpiles and a fall in refinery utilization.
Light, sweet crude for June delivery rose 10 cents to $65.94 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange midmorning in Singapore. The contract on Wednesday gained $1.26 to settle at $65.84 a barrel.
U.S. gasoline stocks have fallen in recent weeks in part because of low production by refiners, which continued to report trouble. Refinery utilization dropped 2.6 percent, Wednesday's petroleum supply report from the U.S. Department of Energy showed.
Gasoline inventories fell by 2.8 million barrels in the week ending Friday, which left inventories at their lowest level since October 2005, the report said. Analysts had expected a 200,000-barrel increase.
But crude oil inventories rose 2.1 million barrels to 334.5 million barrels. Distillate stockpiles, which include heating oil and diesel fuel, remained flat as heating oil inventories fell while diesel stockpiles rose.
Despite a surprising buildup in crude oil inventories, traders focused on the fact that gasoline inventories and refinery capacity in use are both falling just before the vacation driving season _ sparking worries about whether refiners can adequately supply summer driving demand.
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
It is real funny how fuel prices seem to jump just before we [the American public] start up our lives from the long cold winter!
What a system!
A Dem is a Repub is a Pro is a Con is a joke.
I'm sure it's all a coincidence.
It’s on the track to 4...out here, it’s already $3.21/gal, rising fffffasttttt...
What did it peak at last year? $81 a barrel? We got a ways to go.
Ummm...$66.46 right now.
Why did the writer use a bullsh!t verb like "climb" in the headline? It's a bit overstated and hysterical considering what the price was just last year.
Early each year, usually towards the end of winter, the US refineries are required by enviromental laws to switch blends. Doing this takes refineries off line for a short time causes a bottleneck.
However, this year you throw in the fact that a number of refineries are operating at reduced capacity because of maintenance and/or equipment problems and what do you know, our vulnerability is shown.
If one or two large refineries go down for an extended period of time, we are screwed. We do not have enough capacity to take up the slack. If there is a successful terrorist attack on a major oil producing field somewhere in the world, oil prices will spike up substantially within hours.
I sure am glad I’m driving a 05 Civic Si (28mpg in mixed driving) and not a 6000lbs tough-guy-costume, opps, sorry: Pickup.
But then you “need” your trucks, right?
“However, this year you throw in the fact that a number of refineries are operating at reduced capacity because of maintenance and/or equipment problems and what do you know, our vulnerability is shown.”
How do we know that these maintenance and equipment problems are genuine?? I think these oil companies have figured out that they can charge higher prices when they produce less. That’s exactly what Enron did in California a few years ago, when they reduced the supply of electricity and were able to charge higher prices. It’s a win - win situation!
Face it. We are slaves to the oil companies (among others). They have us broke down like a single shot shotgun, if you catch my drift.
Yep, got a small one too, gas prices could double again, don’t matter, if double in prices ruins ones budget, maybe they were already living beyond their means.
Democrats are going to stop buying gasoline too, Al Gores
movie has caused them to be pro-active and not wait
for the government to do something./sarc
Maintenance and equipment problems are continually happening. They are an ongoing problem because of the age of our refineries. Keep in mind no refinery has been built in the USA in at least 30 years.
This is not to say that they are not manipulating the price, but I feel it is highly unlikely. This particular situation happens every year.
Can the oil companies attempt manipulation? Sure. I just believe it is much more difficult for them to do it or get away with it now.
LLS
I won’t say what I’m thinking about your Civic, but some of
us USE our trucks to generate large amounts of cash. We really
do “need” our trucks. What’s your point?
“But then you “need” your trucks, right”.
No, not really, I guess I could put a class V hitch on a Civic and pull my 10K lb. flatbed trailer with backhoe, or my large dump trailer for hauling 8+ yrd of mulch, or stone, dirt and firewood for next season.
While gassing up yesterday, an acquaintance, upon noticing my Bush bumper sticker, started harassing me about Bush’s alleged causing this rise in gas prices.
I replied that they were only halfway to Gore’s desired 5-6 bucks a gallon and where did he think prices were going if the Dems succeeded in pulling our our troops and the ragheads controlled ALL of the mideast oil?
End of conversation.
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