News from May 2008

Futures Trading Commission to Examine Oil Traders’ Intent

An investigation of oil trading by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission will likely target evidence that traders intended to manipulate markets rather than just schemed to make money, former officials of the agency said.

Bloomberg.com

The Coming Energy Wars

Oil prices could hit $200 a barrel in the next few months. How the spike changes everything. This spring, America hit a historic point. With average gas prices per gallon edging toward $4, America’s notoriously profligate ways started to change fast. Americans are driving less, using mass transit more, buying fewer gas guzzlers, indeed shopping [...]

Australia: Peak oil protest in the city

PEAK-HOUR traffic was faced with the looming reality of “peak oil” this morning. About 15 concerned demonstrators marched at the intersection of King William St and North Tce between 8am and 9am to raise awareness that petrol will eventually run out. Organisers Beyond Oil SA called on the State Government to invest more in public [...]

Community leaders told of need to plan for diminishing oil supplies, higher cost

Respected urban planner Tim Moerman says the debate over peak oil is done and now it’s time to confront the challenge it presents to the future. The theory that world oil production would one day reach a peak and start to diminish afterward has been around since M. King Hubbert first floated it in the [...]

Qaeda claims failed attack on oil refinery in Yemen

DUBAI (Reuters) – An al Qaeda-linked group claimed responsibility on Saturday for a mortar attack on a refinery in Yemen, which officials said did not cause any damage, according to an Internet statement. Three blasts were heard on Friday at the refinery in the southern port city of Aden, officials said. “Al Qaeda Organisation in [...]

Crude Oil: On Direction and Equity Correlation

My eyes have been on crude, and I’m genuinely confounded on where it goes. I’ve been burned too many times trying to short crude lately, thinking for a while that this was a speculation driven ascent – but the last two EIA reports show support for this latest move. This is an example of price [...]

UK oil profits are largely an illusion

In theory, it would be all too easy for the Chancellor to postpone the 2p increase in fuel duty. This year, the Institute for Fiscal Studies revealed, the Treasury will receive a windfall of about In his Budget in March, the Chancellor’s estimates for revenues from the North Sea were based on the consensus view [...]

Russia to increase oil output after tax cuts – Putin

PARIS (Reuters) – Russia, the world’s second-largest oil exporter, will raise its oil output in the next few years as new tax cuts will allow oil firms to invest more in exploration and production, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said. Russia imposed heavy taxes on the oil industry, stashing away the proceeds in two oil wealth [...]

Getting Oil From A Stone

Exxon Mobil’s CEO says his energy company’s “corporate social responsibility” is to produce more energy. While Congress wants to tax oil profits, he wants to spend them to find more oil. What a concept. While some companies like British Petroleum run endless ads touting their capitulation to the global warming religion by saying they are [...]

Europe balks at $8 a gallon gas

London – Trucks blocking a main London highway, fishermen blockading French ports, Dutch drivers petitioning parliament, Spanish and Italian fishermen voting to strike