An Interactive Blog Posting
For today’s recap of the stock market, I require audience participation.
Please find a water hose of some sort: garden, detachable sink faucet, shower head, fire hose, super soaker, etc. Ensure ready supply of water. Really even a regular bucket of water will do.
Engage the supply of water (hose or bucket) in such a manner as to apply a steady steam of water against your person.
Now scream.
Louder.
While continuing the above, view the picture below
If you’d like you could maim yourself now, but that’s likely taking things too far.
Given that 1 in 5 stocks across all three major markets (NYSE, AMEX, NASDAQ) was actually green (up) today, odds are pretty good you might have lost some money today.
OIl at $140? You think Congress can wave a wand and make it go back to $60? Oil futures are trade globally now… outlaw them in the US, their trading will go to London, Paris, Geneva, Hong Kong, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Kuwait City, Moscow. It could go anywhere. The people who testify to congress that congress could legislate oil back to $60? Want to bet that they’re getting killed being on the wrong side of some oil derivatives?
Anyway, I have changed my mind on the gas tax repeal. In the short run, if you lifted the federal gas tax ($.18/gal) I do think the price of gas would drop. It probably wouldn’t drop 18 cents (the refineries would want to get some of their lost profit margin back), but probably 10-15 cents. I forgot, and was reminded, that the gasoline retail market is such a competitive one that gas stations make next to no profit on the gas they sell, relying instead on snacks and sodas for the Hamiltons. This is assuming, of course, that it’s not the only gas station within miles or right next to the rental car place at the airport. Or at a boat dock.
Anyway, I was remebered this in Omaha when I was startled to note that “super” (mid grade) gas there was 10 cents cheaper than regular (premium was 30 cents higher than mid grade). Ultimately, I learned that mid grade is cheaper because it has ethanol in it and the other grades apparently don’t (and since it’s NEBRASKA, corn ethanol is cheap). Also, it’d be interesting to know what the MPG difference was (ethanol has a significantly lower energy content / volume, and thus less MPG than gasoline… no, octane has nothing to do with energy content, look it up) and whether or not it was worth the 10 cent discount to get the mid grade.
Ah, stats!
Boats float, banks sink;
Colonel Tom Parker
