Exxon Mobil Profits, Let the ass raping continue! Options

[The Fanatic]

But at $10.9 billion, the profit still ranks as the second-biggest for a U.S. company _ the only larger result in a three-month period was the $11.7 billion Exxon Mobil posted in the final three months of 2007.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/05/01/e...ar_n_99568.html


Nothing new here...


Our addiction to oil continues to enslave us.

[Testm0nkey]

sorry but i think a senate report on gas prices is a more reliable source

[Hartmann]

sorry but i think a senate report on gas prices is a more reliable source

I take senate reports very lightly... let's see, Iraq, gas taxes, healthcare... Yeah, they don't have the best record.

I heard a few of the senators talking about revoking the gas tax for the summer. That's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard, people will save what, $.18 a gallon, all the while the prices continue to rise.

When you get to Houston, let me know. I'll try to get a time to get you to a couple of the refineries here. You'll hear it straight from the horses mouths that these guys don't set prices, and I think they're pretty darn good sources.

Although different refineries have different operating characteristics, with limited
exception the basic gasoline produced at any particular refinery will be chemically identical to
the gasoline produced at any other refinery. A brand of gasoline is created when the refined
gasoline is mixed with a company’s proprietary blend of chemical additives at the terminal,
which usually occurs as the tanker trucks are being filled for their deliveries to service stations.
Because all gasoline must meet the applicable minimum federal standards, most gasoline is
identical even after the proprietary chemical additives are mixed.57 “Branded gasoline” is sold
by the refiner with the understanding that it may be resold under the trademark or trade name
owned by the refiner. “Unbranded gasoline” cannot be resold under the trade name.
Branded gasoline is distributed from refineries and terminals to retail outlets, either
directly to the service station or through bulk plants. Bulk plants are like terminals, but they are
used by jobbers to store product for distribution to retailers.58 Jobbers purchase and transport
gasoline from refiners and sell or distribute it to gasoline retailers or, in some cases, directly to the public through their own retail stations.59 A jobber may distribute several brands of
gasoline, and may own or lease several retail outlets selling different brands, including
unbranded gasoline. Jobbers who contract with a company to distribute a particular brand of
gasoline are often required to obtain that gasoline from a particular terminal. Refiners and
jobbers distribute the gasoline to retail outlets by trucks that generally carry about 7,700 gallons
of fuel each. Figure III.4 (page 83) shows the flow of gasoline from the refiner either directly to
the dealer or indirectly through a jobber distribution system.

Straight from the subcommittee of investigations.

Economic principles dictate that markets in which a few firms have market power to
affect overall supply will exhibit higher prices than more competitive markets. As long as
sellers in a market can indirectly affect prices through their supply decisions, it can be expected
that sellers will act in their self-interest to manage supply so as to maximize their profits; this means that producers in a concentrated market will attempt to achieve and maintain a tight
balance between supply and demand. This is increasingly the situation in the gasoline industry
today.

Nationwide, in the winter of 2001 - 2002, demand fell and inventories rose following the
tragic events of September 11, 2001. With reduced demand and higher inventories, prices fell.
As a result, refining margins fell and refiners cut back on production in order to obtain higher
margins. Along with the increase in the price of crude oil and market speculation, these reductions in production were a significant factor contributing to the run-up in price in the late
winter and continuing into the early spring of this year.

These are the only paragraphs in the entire report that I've seen that says anything about pricing and it states it is a matter of supply and demand and the equilibrium.

Yes, they control the supply and limit it but they have to, otherwise you have refined gasoline sitting around and it does have somewhat of a shelf-life and the risks involved in storing it.