Fill up on gas!

[kalivor]

CNN suggests that you fill up on gas while you can still afford it:

http://money.cnn.com/2005/03/04/news...ices/index.htm

[esskreemr]

It's alright people, we still have the Alaskan Wildlife Refuge. Oh yeah, after we invade Iran, we'll have plenty of oil.

[keith]

It's alright people, we still have the Alaskan Wildlife Refuge.

I didn't know you could make oil from caribou, whatever will they think of next.

[esskreemr]

Scientists have islolated a way to implant a gene in the dna of kids from 3rd world nations. Each child can now produce up to 2 gallons of crude each day.

On a secondary note, the U.S. is now spearheading an effort to end hunger and disease in Africa

[Zilverzmurfen]

CNN suggests that you fill up on gas while you can still afford it: http://money.cnn.com/2005/03/04/news...ices/index.htm

Pardon me, but according to one of the links I followed:

"U.S. average pump prices for self-serve gas are currently $1.92 a gallon"

Is this somewhat correct prices?


Please allow me to laugh!!!

Using those figures, if you were to pay what we pay for gasoline here in Sweden, you would have to pay 5,61 USD per gallon.

"While you can still afford it..." Pfft!

[latenight]

Yeah, but we pay for healthcare and a ton of other crap....so less taxes.

[kalivor]

Pardon me, but according to one of the links I followed:Is this somewhat correct prices?


Please allow me to laugh!!!

Using those figures, if you were to pay what we pay for gasoline here in Sweden, you would have to pay 5,61 USD per gallon.

"While you can still afford it..." Pfft!

(Forgive me for reducing the size of your laugh)

Trust me, I do realise that North Americans have the lowest fuel costs on the planet, and that we're lucky that way. (Canada = lowest pre-tax gas costs. U.S. = lowest post-tax gas costs), that doesn't mean that an increase of more than 10% to the price of gas is not insubstantial -- particularly for those who need to drive, and perhaps live from paycheque to paycheque.

It should also be noted that an increase in North American gas prices probably means a similar increase in European gas prices (an increase of approximately 13%, making your new cost approximately 6.34 USD per gallon) ... the warning wasn't only meant for those of us living over here ...

[Zilverzmurfen]

(Forgive me for reducing the size of your laugh)

You are forgiven.
In fact I just reduced it myself, I didn't mean to be offensive. Sorry.

...the warning wasn't only meant for those of us living over here...

Sadly I realise that. And I also realise what drives the prices up...

[kalivor]

You are forgiven.
In fact I just reduced it myself, I didn't mean to be offensive. Sorry.

No offense was taken ... feel free to laugh as large as you'd like. I only find it annoying when the size of the laugh is repeated in the quote boxes for the next 10 or 12 posts ... so I try not to do it myself.

[The Armourer]

I echo Zilver's comment - you know (and no offense intended) the US attitute to energy pricing is not understood outside of the US. The US executive decision to opt out of or even throw doubt upon non-US projections on the effect of Co2 emissions is not understood either (should that be either?) so a winge on gasolene pricing is really not taken seriously outside of the US. I am not even suggesting that non-US countries are paying the 'proper' price for 'gas'.

[Larrison]

This data is a little old, but should illustrate comparative gasoline prices (as used in automobiles). http://www.runzheimer.com/corpc/news/scripts/012903.asp

2003
INTERNATIONAL GASOLINE PRICES

Most Expensive
Location Price Per Gallon

Hong Kong $5.34
London, England 4.55
Paris, France 4.41
Amsterdam, Netherlands 4.38
Seoul, S. Korea 4.35
Copenhagen, Denmark 4.24
Tokyo, Japan 4.20
Milan, Italy 4.14
Oslo, Norway 4.13
Frankfurt, Germany 4.00

Least Expensive
Location Price Per Gallon

Caracas, Venezuela $0.28
Jakarta, Indonesia 0.74
Cairo, Egypt 0.75
Kuwait City, Kuwait 0.77
Manama, Bahrain 0.82
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 0.93
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 1.05
Kiev, Ukraine 1.13
Muscat, Oman 1.13
Moscow, Russia 1.21

The article lists the price for self-serve unleaded regular gasoline average as $1.48 per gallon in the United States and $2.10 in Canada.

[Larrison]

As a coda to the previous message -- why the difference in price?

it appears the difference is primarily taxes. US taxes average around 30-34% or the price per gallon. The rest of the cost is in refinery costs, transportation costs to get the gasoline to the consumer, etc.

Internationally, there is a much higher tax load placed upon the gasoline by the government in the country. 75+% of the price of gasoline in the UK was taxes (in 2000, the last year I can find comparative data), and 80% in France. One reference lists Sweden having 72% of the price of gasoline coming from national taxes. [http://www.iaee.org/documents/p03kurtubi.pdf ] Other references vary in the percentages, but are in the same ballpark.

Let's go back to zilver's $5.61 per gallon. If 72% of the price comes from taxes, then taxes are $4.04 of the cost of gasoline there, leaving $1.57 for the rest of the costs. This isn't too far off from US at $1.92 if 30% of the price is taxes, leaving $1.34 in the US for the rest of the costs other than taxes.

If the tax rate on gasoline in Sweden was the same as that in the US (30% of the total), then the price in Sweden would be around $1.57/(.7) = $2.24. Somewhat higher than the US, but not amazingly so... with the difference as a slightly higher cost to ship crude to Sweden and refine it there.

The difference is really taxes --

[lochinvar]

Let's just put this all in perspective.

When I was a lad, gasoline was selling for approx. $0.35 per gallon.
A loaf of bread at that time cost approx. $0.25. (I know I'm really dating myself, here.)

Today, a loaf of bread costs approx. $2.50--a tenfold increase.
By this not-very-scientific yardstick for price change, gasoline should be running at about $3.50 per gallon. But it isn't.

The point here is that, adjusting for inflation, the price of gasoline (in the US, at least) is lower now than it has ever been. Hell, the last time I remember the price per gallon even approaching $1.75/gal was during the oil embargo in the 70's. Since then, the price actually fell significantly for decades until is finally started inching up again at the end of the millenium.

We've had it very, very good for a long time, and shouldn't be complaining.

[Inquartata]

Inflation doesn't affect the prices of all commodities equally, of course. But especially considering that oil is a finite commodity and wheat ( ie bread ) is not, your conclusion is worth bearing in mind.

Notice too how all of the low-price cities Larrison listed are in oil-producing countries, and all the high-price ones are in non-producing countries. The US is a petroleum producer, albeit it does not pump enough to meet its own needs; Sweden is not a producing country. It makes sense that prices should be higher in Europe generally than they are here, even exclusive of taxes.