Christmas 2008: Serving Roast Golden Goose- Oil @$35.35

By: streetwise (Diary)  |  December 24th at 02:03 PM  | 

One of the most astounding stories of 2008 has been the roller-coaster ride in crude oil prices.  After several years of steady increases, a burst of speculative activity in 2008 pushed the price above $145 per bbl in mid-July.  This produced a windfall for the speculators (who exited the market in time), nefarious petrol states (Russia, Venezuela, Iran et al) and the oil companies.  It | Read More »

Random Thoughts as Oil Nears $102

By: streetwise (Diary)  |  September 10th at 11:59 AM  | 

What a difference a few months make! Crude oil began the year at roughly $96 per barrel. It surged to $145 by mid-July, and has plummeted to near the $102 level today. Massive amounts of cash flowed into the commodity markets this year, looking for the next hot ticket after the debacle of the mortgage-backed and CDO markets. Prices, predictably, moved upwards. But the 50% | Read More »

Oily Thoughts of the Day- Of Turkeys and GOBBL lines

By: streetwise (Diary)  |  August 15th at 12:44 PM  | 

*Is it Midnight at the Oasis Yet? Not Quite! * As I work on this blog, the price of crude oil has dipped below $112. Market analysts attribute the rise to a strengthening dollar and deepening concern about global demand. Crude has thus declined 25% from its speculative peak in mid-July.

Kurdish Rebels Claim Responsibility for Oil Pipeline Explosion

By: streetwise (Diary)  |  August 7th at 04:17 PM  | 

Kurdish rebels have claimed responsibility for an explosion on the pipeline carrying Azeri crude from the Caspian Sea ACG fields. Output is expected to drop by 80% pending repairs.