Guest Post: Why Is Gasoline Consumption Tanking?

Zero Hedge ^ | 02/10/2012 | Tyler Durden

[Mechanicos]

Retail gasoline deliveries, already well below 1980 levels, have absolutely fallen off a cliff.

....

Deliveries in November 2011 were 30.9 MGD, a staggering 47% decline.

.....

What other plausible explanation is there for the decline from 42.4 MGD in July 2011 to 30.9 MGD in November 2011 other than a dramatic decline in discretionary driving? That 27% drop in a few months in unprecedented, except in times of war or sharp economic contraction, i.e. recession.

[Eureka_Lead]

Oh that is a fantastic and accurate tag line

BTW.. it did not inclusive (reasons of size) Because we are run by crap socialist economics.

EL

[Buckeye McFrog]

Economies of scale go in reverse when you decrease production.

You are correct of course. But most of the General Public did not take Econ 101 (or if they did, they slept thru it)

[Fee]

If the US Fed keeps printing money, and since purchase of oil is done in dollars, more dollar printing, the higher the price of oil because it will take more devalued dollars to purchase one barrel of oil even in a depression when price of oil/gasoline should be dropping due to lower demand.

[redgolum]

Well, oil prices are rising while consumption is dropping. For that matter production is rising too.

The influence on prices is not just demand right now. Ultimately, a lot people are going to get caught short, but right now things are upside down.

Similar situation in the corn market. Corn is to high to be used. So high Cargil and ADM are LAYING OFF (never happened in my memory). Livestock producers are cutting way back, because they can't afford the feed. Yet prices keep going up.

It isn't because of the end user demand.

[Mr. Peabody]

Imagine what the price would be if we were in recovery.
Inflation is worse than we think.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

I totally agree.

The nice world-wide famine our fearless New World Order leaders have planned for us will get everybody's priorities back in line.

The ones who survive, that is.

[Obadiah]

What other plausible explanation is there for the decline...

Obama

[RobbyS]

Don’t confuse people with the facts! ;-)

[meatloaf]

While there may be some overall decrease in supply, we’re exporting more gasoline than ever. The same drop in demand happened during and after the oil embargo in the 70’s.

[trailhkr1]

Guest Post: Why Is Gasoline Consumption Tanking?

I don't see nearly as many SUV's on the road and way more smaller cars/mid size.

[READINABLUESTATE]

Gas is getting near the magic $4.50 mark. At that point people start cutting back bigtime. It is just a step in the process of the price cycle. The cure for high prices is.......(wait for it)...... high prices. IMHO.

[Buckeye McFrog]

Just saying the average Joe and Sally Sixpack out there will see a 47% decline in consumption coupled with a 150% increase in the retail price, and will then begin entertaining every kind of conspiracy theory. They aren’t going to stop and put it to a macroeconomic analysis.

[RavenLooneyToon]

To the Communists, this is proof that the theory of rising energy costs to unaffordable levels reduces consumption which reduces our dependence while reducing the nations carbon footprint.
They will tout this trend as a great success!
As an added bonus to them, all business will go under because people will have nothing left to spend.
This is so beyond evil.

[GBA]

I'm doing my part. Most of the time, I can work with a computer and an internet connection from wherever so I don't commute if I don't have to.

This morning UPS dropped off a nuclear/coal powered electric lawn mower. Next: Trade the van for a glowplug powered rollerskate.

[Vanders9]

I can think of another one (although it's very connected to your first two). With gas prices rapidly increasing, and personal finances heavily stressed, the MPG rating of vehicles is likely to be higher in the appeal stakes than it has been before. In other words, consumers could be choosing more fuel efficient vehicles, which will lead to a drop in consumption.

I don't know if that is happening or not, but I suppose there must be some stats somewhere on fuel efficiency year on year.

[matthew fuller]

Here’s a neat little site- US Inflation Calculator-
http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/

It says that inflation since 1987 has been 100%. You can plug in any years that you want.

[topsail]

My wife and I are trying to do our part !
We traded our Astro van, which she drove to work every day, for a Honda CR-V which gets twice the MPG of the Astro van.

I have recently bought a used, small, Honda Rebel 250 motorcycle, which gets around 70 MPG and can travel at highway speeds, for my local trips.

These changes plus the reduction of un-necessary travel have made a difference. I think other people are doing the same.

[Bud Krieger]

My wife and I are going to pick up our new car this weekend. The new car has an EPA rating of 40 mpg on highway , the old one was averaging about 20 mpg on highway. A rather large drop in our fuel consumption. I am sure many others are taking the same path as us. We just got tired of spending 80+ dollars a week in gas.

It is a Hyundai Elantra , built in Alabama.

[cuban leaf]

Ironically, I went from my five minute walk to my office at T-mobile headquarters in Bellevue to my 48 mile drive to my job in Kentucky.

Everything else is so much cheaper, though, that gas could go to $10 a gallon and it would still be well worth it. That said, I suspect $10 gas would affect my life in other ways...

[OldMissileer]

Of course this is happening. We are in the middle of a full-blown Communist takeover and few people seem to understand or even care if they do understand.