How many people here will not go on vacation because of high gas prices?

You must be kidding, we are flying across country on vacation this year because I beleive we won't be able to afford to do so next year, and driving 2000 miles to reach a vacation destination is too exhausting for a 1 week vacation.

Intereesting tidbit. Been focusing so much on cars, that I forgot about summertime recreational vehicles.

I was looking at refined petroleum consumption and I saw that jet fuel consumption is going up and despite US airlines losing record millions of dollars- they are planning more flights than ever instead of cutting back. I just heard that direct flights are making a comeback. that means more fuel consumption.

It looks like Prices will stabilize and won't run up to 60, unless catastrophe strikes oil infrastructure.

The amount of oil in storage is plenty enough for refineries in the US.
We are seeing a real slowdown in Europe. Anyone know where to get European oil data?

$53.28, and rising. No shortage, just speculation.

I've been following the steadily advancing major US stock market indices for the last couple of weeks now, and I've established for myself that clearly the oil price is now fully in the domain of the speculators.

The indices have advanced for no economic reason whatsoever in that time, with pretty much zero solid economic news to support any rise (more to the contrary in fact), and the oil price has risen too along with it. So this is the volatility that is so often talked about these days? It's madness! All of it! Pure and simple!

Damn, and I thought I could make some money based on rational principles! Well, there's a few monthly salaries I kissed goodbye right there!

$53.28, and rising. No shortage, just speculation.

I've been following the steadily advancing major US stock market indices for the last couple of weeks now, and I've established for myself that clearly the oil price is now fully in the domain of the speculators.

The indices have advanced for no economic reason whatsoever in that time, with pretty much zero solid economic news to support any rise (more to the contrary in fact), and the oil price has risen too along with it. So this is the volatility that is so often talked about these days? It's madness! All of it! Pure and simple!

Damn, and I thought I could make some money based on rational principles! Well, there's a few monthly salaries I kissed goodbye right there!

New York (Platts)--10May2005

June crude futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange opened 22 cts higher at $52.25/bbl Tuesday as supply concerns began to cause pricing shifts in the term structure of the price curve. After having settled at a low of minus $1.77/bbl May 4, the June/July spread traded in to minus $1.22/bbl early Tuesday, partially a function of the "roll" - - moving positions from the active front month contract to the second contract - - as well as a potential tapering off of crude imports as result of the trans-Atlantic arbitrage having closed over the last several weeks. The potential drop-off in crude imports as runs seasonally rise would be an omen that stocks would stop building. The upswing in NYMEX crude prices also caused the WTI/Brent spread to swing back to what would be considered normal, with the WTI at a premium to Brent. June unleaded gasoline opened 77 points higher at $1.4950/gal and June heating oil opened 48 points higher at $1.4450/gal.


•Brent crude oil futures on London's International Petroleum Exchange gained ground on Tuesday, following the trend set late Monday in New York where a bout of short-covering pushed up WTI contracts. At 1015GMT the June front month contract traded at $51.54/bbl, up 25 cts. "There is plenty of oil around but getting it refined is the problem," commented one trader in response to remarks by by Qatari oil minister Abdullah al-Attiyah that oil supply was adequate to meet demand.

•Several OPEC ministers, including Saudi Arabia's have said the problem was not with crude oil supply but with refined products given the shortage of refining capacity in consuming nations. Some market sources say there is concern that there will be an insufficient build in US gasoline stocks ahead of the driving season, which typically marks the beginning of peak demand.

•"Anything less than 1-mil bbl would give cause for concern," commented a London based trader as the market awaited the lastest weekly inventory data to be published in the US Wednesday.

Tanada,

Boats, lawn mowers all use diesel.

Gasoline stocks are unrelated to diesel.

Refineries get to choose what type to refine, but most want to max out on gasoline if possible.

So boat and other diesel demand won't affect gasoline prices, but will affect crude prices.

I don't know where you are located, but here in Michigan 90% of lawn equipment and at least 50% of pleasure boats are gasoline fueled. Most people who buy small boats are happy with a simple gas outboard to run out on the lake for a day of fishing, diesels go in the big yatchts and ocean going boats but those vessels operate for most of the year around, not just seasonally.

I checked myself yesterday our industrial lawn mowers use 6 litre's of fuel per hour of operation <gasoline in our case> to power a 25 HP engine. We operate for an average of 30 operating hours per week. We are not at all unusual in that reguard when it comes to groundskeeping.

We are down to $47.80 and dropping. What is happening? Not to mention this may convince people the price spike was just a bunch of hooey anyway.