NO SPECULATORS MANIPULATING OIL, NOW AT $100 PER BARREL

NO SPECULATORS MANIPULATING OIL, NOW AT $100 PER BARREL
I don't get these guys that are sticking to their guns that oil ran up to $147 per barrel due entirely to supply and demand issues. Here we are after a year of watching oil run all over the place. One year ago we were stressed about $75 per barrel oil, then 2 months ago it hits $147 per barrel and today it is near $100 per barrel. Has supply and demand changed that much over the past year?
Well, I guess we would have to argue that demand is down, but did it fall off a cliff or has it been down all year. Then we have OPEC, crooks, cutting supply. They like this crazy price of oil. I do agree we are in a position where oil is becoming scarce and the growth of supply is diminished, but did that cause this run on pricing. Then followed by the drop.
It has to be speculators! They didn't want to put their money in the stock market or real estate, so commodities got the boost. Their greed cut into every one's pockets and has helped accelerate this recession. Why is this allowed?

Just my opinion!
Jeff Cameron

STRONG DOLLAR AND WEAK OIL MEANS STRONG STOCK MARKET

Let's see what happens this week. But with the dollar on the rise, oil should continue to drop. As oil drops further speculators will get out, fueling a further decline. If we can get gas back to $3 per gallon that would be equal to a $75 to $100 boost to each consumer. This would help get our economy back on track. All that means a stronger stock market. Let's see!!!!

Just my opinion,

Jeff Cameron

ENERGY COSTS DRIVE INFLATION

SHOCKER! No way is this a shocker, Hello, with oil near $150 per barrel, everything is getting more expensive. There is only so long that business can absorb this expense before passing it on to the consumer. WE NEED AN ENERGY PLAN TODAY! We ship over $60 billion a month to other companies for oil. Why? Because we have let the big oil companies keep our addiction up and high. I don't like government intervention, but if a $1 tax on gas had been applied 10 years ago at an incremental pace, then our SUV's would be getting 40 MPG today and gas would be around $3 per gallon including the tax. We would not be sending our equity to the OPEC nations.

Just my opinion,

Jeff Cameron

Inflation Rate Hits 26-Year High
By MARTIN CRUTSINGER,
AP
WASHINGTON (July 16) - U.S. consumer prices shot up in June at the fastest pace in 26 years with two-thirds of the surge blamed on soaring energy prices.The Labor Department reported that consumer prices jumped 1.1 percent last month, much worse than had been expected. Energy prices rocketed upward by 6.6 percent, reflecting big gains for gasoline, home heating oil and natural gas.The big rise in prices cut deeply into consumers' earning power with average weekly wages, after adjusting for inflation, dropping by 0.9 percent in June, the biggest monthly decline since 1984.
http://money.aol.com/news/articles/_a/inflation-rate-hits-26-year-high/20080716092709990001

NOT WHAT THE REAL ESTATE DOCTOR ORDERED, HIGHER INTEREST RATES

As high oil prices are sending inflation into every aspect of our economy, interest rates tick up. The entry level buyer is driving the recovery efforts in our real estate market and higher rates take away their purchasing power. The reality is that until our market is fully recovered we are going to be dependent on lower rates to bring in first time home buyers and investors. Rates are then tied to inflation which is all about oil.
It is time for the US government to do something about oil prices. These high prices are driven by speculators with no place to make a profit today, so they buy oil. Let's hit on both the supply and demand side. Increase drilling, open markets, but drill smart and keep the environment in mind. Increase incentives for research to lower our dependence on oil. I would love to see a candidate for the President of the United States come out with a 10 year plan to cure our addiction!

Just my opinion,

Jeff Cameron

article on interest rates:
Mortgage Applications Plunge on Soaring Rates
By Reuters 18 Jun 2008 07:04 AM ET
Applications for U.S. home mortgages dropped for the fourth week in the last five as soaring rates on standard, fixed-rate mortgages choked off refinancing opportunities, an industry group said on Wednesday. CNBC.com
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity fell 8.7 percent to 508.4 in the week ended June 13.
The MBA's seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications tumbled last week by 15 percent to 1,378.6 -- its lowest since July 2006.
The gauge of loan requests for home purchases declined 4.3 percent to 360.2.
Fixed 30-year mortgage rates averaged 6.57 percent in the week, up 33 basis points from the prior week and the highest since July 2007.http://www.cnbc.com/id/25237087

US EXPORTS SET NEW RECORD, BUT OIL SQUANDERS

The week dollar has boosted exports to an all time HIGH. Awesome for the exporters. But oil imports wiped the whole gain out. That was on an average price of oil below $100 per barrel.
the deficit was $60.9 Billion dollars, the highest in over a year. People we just gave one of our $60 billion companies to the rest of the world Or 2 $30 billion companies Or 6 $10 billion companies Or any mix. The trade deficit is what countries use to go to war over. One country would have the best economy and the others would have to send them all their gold. They then fought to get it back.
We need to fight to stop the Bleeding of America's savings. We can fight by becoming Energy Free. We can fight by having a better Education System. We can fight by ending the thoughtless purchase of worthless trinkets imported from evolving companies. We can fight by recognizing the problem and working together to fix the problem.

Trade deficit jumps to highest level in 13 months
By MARTIN CRUTSINGER,
AP
Posted: 2008-06-10 08:53:15
WASHINGTON (AP) - The trade deficit jumped to the highest level in 13 months in April as America's bill for foreign crude oil soared to an all-time high.The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that the gap between what the nation imports and what it sells abroad rose by 7.8 percent to $60.9 billion, the largest imbalance since March 2007. The April deficit was $4.4 billion higher than the March imbalance of $56.5 billion.The deterioration in the deficit was driven by a $4.3 billion increase in crude oil imports which jumped to a record $29.3 billion in April, as the average per barrel price rose to an all-time high of $96.81.Oil imports are expected to climb further in coming months given that crude oil has continued its relentless rise and is now trading above $130 per barrel.U.S. export sales totaled $155.5 billion in April, up 3.3 percent to an all-time high, reflecting big gains in sales of commercial aircraft, farm machinery, medical equipment and computers. But this increase was swamped by a 4.5 percent rise in imports, which also set a record at $216.4 billion, reflecting the huge increase in oil as well as big gains in imports of autos and consumer goods.
Read the full article: http://money.aol.com/news/articles/_a/trade-deficit-jumps-to-highest-level-in/n20080610085309990019

STOCKS CRASH, OIL SPIKES

If anyone was not sure the run on oil is investor driven and not demand driven, then today should make it clear to them. Investors dumped stocks and bought oil futures. Oil is up $17 in 2 days.

I have heard the argument, only so much oil is produced and thus used; there is no oil speculation going on. Here is what happens: Let's say we need 100 widgets for July, we produce 100 widgets for July. We have harmony and prices are driven by the market and at market value. But no, hedge funds(the same guys that caused the real estate boom and bust) buy the futures of the widgets for July in June. July comes along and the buyers for the 100 widgets buy from those hedge funds. This is why the price is artificially HIGH!