Oil/Fuel?

[Feek]

So oil is now lower/barrel than it was a year ago, why the **** are we still paying these stupid prices for fuel at the pumps?

*insert rant*

[Matblack]

So oil is now lower/barrel than it was a year ago, why the **** are we still paying these stupid prices for fuel at the pumps?

*insert rant*

Because fuel prices aren't based on current oil prices?

MB

[Feek]

Huh?

Over the last year as fuel prices have gone up, all we hear is "It's because the price of oil has gone up, matey".

[Matblack]

Yes it did but there is a delay, it is only now we are seeing lower prices kicking in, however I wouldn't get too excited, they are going to fall a lot more but this is going to be powered by a reduction in demand due to a recession, so you'll get lovely cheap fuel but there will be some other nasty side effects.

MB

[Zirax]

Isn't oil also bought in dollars and there is the effect of the £ being low against the $

Currently its around 1.7 whereas a year ago it was nearer 2

[Fayshun]

Isn't the 'lag' between oil prices and petrol prices at the pump about 6 weeks?

Or so the theiving bastard oil companies tell us.

[Matblack]

Its something with needs to be factored in, as far as I can see the price changes log by a couple of months, we are starting to see the difference at the pumps, of course they are quicker to put prices up than reduce them but hey that's what we call a sellers market :/

MB

[Fayshun]

that's what we call a sellers market :/

MB
That's what I call a ******* rip off :(

[Matblack]

That's what I call a ******* rip off :(

And so you might but its business, unfortunately

MB

[Fayshun]

And so you might but its business, unfortunately

MB
I'm going to discover oil.

[jmc41]

I wonder if BG, eDF and npower (and so forth) are going to remove the 35% increases they put in recently.

I meant they only made ~£350m profit last year, poor chaps.

[Matblack]

I suspect that without the raises they would have made a loss, that's a bit of a guess but I suspect they wouldn't have made much profit, that's what happens where things are run for profit, people try to profit from them :(

MB

[Mark]

Yet again, we have market forces to contend with. The reason fuel prices won't go down immediately, and that it could even be next spring before energy prices go down is down to one word - futures (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Futures_contract).

The problem is that most energy suppliers will have already sourced their supplies for the winter (at previous high prices), so they'd make a substantial loss if they cut prices now. This works the other way too - claims of energy companies absorbing increases are only partially true - the rest is down to the time lag caused by the futures market.

Then there's the Opec Cartel. They have an emergency meeting planned next month and they will probably cut production to meet the cut in demand, jacking the prices back up again.

[Matblack]

Naughty OPEC monkies trying to make profit out of their only real commodity. admittedly if your going to have a commodity its the one to have!

MB

[Mark]

Absolutely. All that money being ploughed into artificial palm islands, the world's tallest skyscrapers, and 7* hotels has to come from somewhere. If you didn't already know where, now you do.

[Feek]

I can still mutter in discontent.

[Stan_Lite]

I'm going to discover oil.

I'll help you dig it up :D

[Tak]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7662918.stm

[Matblack]

He can 'demand' all be likes, the only way the UK government has to effect petrol prices is to cut the taxes we pay on it, he can ask nicely but that's all the 'power' he has :(

MB

[Siaus22]

Isn't it something like 83p in every £1 spent on fuel is actually tax? When you have that sort of level then it becomes a bit of a problem when looking at ways to reduce prices. Could the Government take a massive hit with a reduction of tax?