...Why Gas Prices are higher in California than in other Parts of US English 123 James L Hicks Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Abstract The rising gasoline and oil prices have become a global concern since petroleum has many uses around the world and yet its prices have continued rising for the last sixty years. This paper sought to find out why gas prices are higher in California than in other parts of America. The literature reviewed showed that West gasoline market dominated by California is defined by tight balance between supply and demand. Other factors found to be contributing the escalating gas price in California include isolation of the state from other refining centers, market conditions including international demand, Wall Street speculation, poor policies leading to uncontrolled oil cartels, decline of oil production during technical failure, political interferences, and increasing prices of crude oil due to demand forces. Despite there being no quick solution to the challenge, temporary measures such as efficient use of the available resource while looking for alternative cheaper source of energy could alleviate the challenge. Why Gas Prices are Higher in California than in Other Parts of US The Rising gasoline and oil prices have today become a world concern (Garrington, 2012). More concerns are raised considering that petroleum is an important product whose price continues escalating for the last sixty...
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...is not enough information in regards to all of the economic costs associated with picking up the sticks and therefore I am skeptical of it at this time. 9. In the short run the market for gasoline has a factor other than price that changes and the increased income causes a shift in the demand curve to the right. This change...
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...Running Head: GASOLINE AND OIL PRICES EFFECT ON AMERICANS Gasoline and Oil Prices Effect on Americans Cindy Gasoline and Oil Prices Effect on Americans A well-known fact to Americans is gasoline and oil prices have soared over the last several years. Virtually every American has made changes in their day-to-day life related to this higher cost. Even though gasoline/oil companies and the people who invest in them are making money, prices are too high; many Americans have to decide between buying gasoline and paying for their prescription medications, healthcare, mortgage, and food. The government needs to step in and set guidelines to prevent gas companies from raising prices so quickly. “While drivers have been painfully paying up at the pump, oil companies have been racking up eye-popping profits” (Krantz, 2005, ¶ 1). During the second quarter of this year, one gasoline/oil company recorded profits each minute were in excess of what an average American earns in one year. According to Clifford Krauss’ article in the New York Times, “Exxon’s profits were nearly $90,000 a minute over the quarter” (2008, ¶3). Mr. Krauss’ article also states, “Record earnings for Exxon, the world’s largest publicly traded oil company, have become routine as the surge of oil prices in recent years has filled its coffers” (2008, ¶2). This is only one company; the other oil companies are showing earnings of the same, if not more. Americans are scaling back on...
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...many different elements that contribute to rising gasoline prices. The major cause for increasing gasoline prices has to do with refining capacity. Even if oil were inexpensive, we would still have a problem converting it into the gas that fuels our economy. That is what keeps the gas prices high. When gas supplies are short, due to an “inability to refine crude oil into gas efficiently,” prices increase. This is a component of supply and demand economics. In a positive aspect, rising gasoline prices do serve a purpose; they curtail usage so that we do not eventually run out of fuel. If gasoline continued to retain its cheap price, despite how much was available, people may pull up to their favorite gas station only to see caution tape around the pumps because frequent consumers would not curtail their consumption. Contrary to what some think, gasoline isn’t the only product refined from crude oil. In his article “Gas Prices Rising”, Matt Rosenberg wrote that, “Only about 51.4% of an oil barrel is used to make gasoline; the rest of the oil is used to make other products such as jet fuel, asphalt, road oil, heating oil and liquefied refinery gas” (Para 3, Rosenberg). This makes oil a high demand commodity around the world and because most countries don’t produce enough oil of their own, they have to import it from other countries that have more than they know what to do with. This also creates a global market in which prices can fluctuate depending on who needs oil and how...
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...Page 3 Consumer Response to Changes in gas prices Page 3 Price Elasticity Page 4 Suppliers Response to Price Changes Page 4 Equilibrium Prices under low price elasticity Page 5 What Causes Gas Prices to Increase Page 6 Opportunity Cost Page 7 Conclusion Page 7 Introduction Prices are set by demand and supply. When supply falls, prices rise quickly. The demand for oil continues to hit a record high. Countries like China and India are consuming it more frequently as they industrialize, but cars and power factories. However, the supply of gasoline has been restricted by certain requirements forcing oil refiners to manufacture different gasoline for an assortment of purposes. The price of gasoline reflects producers’ costs and consumer’s willingness to pay. Gasoline prices tend to rise if the cost to produce and supply such commodity rises, or if people decide to buy less gas at the current price (when supply is greater than demand). The price of gasoline will stop rising or falling when a price is reached at which quantity demanded is equal to quantity supplied by producers, otherwise known as equilibrium. Consumer Response to changes in the price of gas 3 The rising price of gas will affect consumer spending rather than significantly impacting the amount of gasoline being purchased. The major aspect of the consumer life affected by the spike in gasoline prices is the change made to their expenditures across...
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...The Effects of Petroleum Prices on the Economy Crude oil prices have taken a dive in the last month, causing the gasoline prices to plummet. Consumers are more than ecstatic to see the prices fall, but this current trend in prices will undeniably be short term. For most of us the prices of petroleum is only apparent at the gasoline pump, but there are multiple products affected such as diesel and heating oil. The intent of this paper is to focus more on gasoline prices, supply and demand of gasoline, and elasticity demand of gasoline, externalities, regulations, and taxes that have put into place regarding gasoline. Also, explaining the underlying origin of such a histrionic change will give a better perspective to all consumers. Let’s start by explaining what OPEC is and their involvement in the petroleum market. Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), is an intergovernmental organization consisting of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Qatar, Libya, United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Nigeria, and Angola ( Brief History, 2015). OPEC was established in 1960 with five original countries and has since added numerous more. The initial and current objective of the OPEC is to maintain prices that are both consistent and protected for the producers of petroleum. OPEC intends to supply the consuming nations with petroleum while gaining a just return on capital to those investing in the industry ( Brief History, 2015). How have changes...
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...Are Rising Food Costs Related to Rising Fuel Costs? ECO 550 Dr. Isley Mary Thomas March 19, 2011 Are the rising food costs related to rising fuel costs? Not only does the rising costs of fuel cause an increase in prices, but the use of some crops to make biofuels also drives the cost of food up. High crude oil prices have fueled interest in finding alternative energy sources and reducing dependency on import oil supplies. The emergence of biofuels has given rise to an alternative market for a number of agriculture commodities. Fossil fuel is a general term for buried combustible geologic deposits of organic materials formed from decayed plants and animals that have been converted to crude oil, coal, natural gas, or heavy oils by exposure to heat and pressure in the earth’s crust over hundreds of millions of years. The burning of these fossil fuels is the largest source of emissions of carbon dioxide which is one of the greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. Biofuels are transportation fuels like ethanol and biodiesel that are made from biomass materials. The fuels are usually blended with petroleum fuels, but can also be used alone. Using ethanol or biodiesel means we don’t burn quite as much fossil fuel. Biofuels...
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...used car continue to increase. We see a trend from 1995 to 1999 and again from 2009-2010 (2011 not release yet) for used car sales increased. Increase in demand due to high gas prices and the short supply of Japanese small new cars. We find a significant demand response, as nearly half of the decline in sales of U.S. manufacturers from 2002-2010 was due to the increase in gasoline prices. On the other hand, a gasoline tax increase would have a modest effect on average fuel efficiency. The effect of prices of used cars on the demand for new cars are mixed, customers are looking for more efficient cars, and less payments. The recession in the United States is driving more costumers to buy used cars since they are more affordable; also the earthquake in Japan created a short supply for small cars in the market, bringing more opportunity for the used car to be in demand. One thing to keep in mind because of the demand for small cars and compact cars is rising, the dealerships are selling used cars for more than their actual MSRP, and the customers are buying them, therefore moving the economy in the right direction. We the used car prices increasing and Japan being able to continue manufacturing small and compact cars, customers are beginning to lining more and more for new cars. We the high prices of gasoline, the used car mind set is changing creating a demand for more small, compact and gas efficient cars.. More fuel efficient cars are continuing being the focus of production...
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...Everyone’s Gasoline Problem The fluctuation of gas prices occurs because of a number of factors; the price of crude oil, the price of manufacturing, the price of corn is all tied to the price of oil and the price we see at the pump for gas. In 2011, the United States consumed about 134 billion gallons1 (or 3.19 billion barrels2) of gasoline, a daily average of about 367.08 million gallons (8.74 million barrels). This was about 6% less than the record high of about 142.38 billion gallons (or 3.39 billion barrels) consumed in 2007,according to the Department of Energy ("How much gasoline," 2012). Of that, almost half is used for motor gasoline. The remaining is used for distillate fuel oil, jet fuel, residual fuel and other oils. Each barrel of oil contains 42 gallons (159 L), which yields 19 to 20 gallons (75 L) of gasoline. ("How much gasoline," 2012). So, in the United States, something like 178 million gallons of gasoline is consumed every day. The fluctuations of gasoline prices are a classic economic example of supply and demand in the market. If the demand for corn or oil increases or if a decrease in supply occurs, this then causes an increase in gasoline prices. On the other hand, if demand for corn or oil decreases there will be an oversupply of products and the prices will decrease. The seasons and US holidays may also have an impact on the price of gasoline at the pump. Americans travel more during the summer and over the holidays, and the price of fuel increases...
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...petroleum based product is gasoline. We use gasoline everyday in our vehicles. We count on gasoline to get us to our important destinations, because most of these destinations would be time-consuming and exhausting to reach on foot alone. Petroleum is pretty much vital in many of today’s industries. 40% of America’s energy consumption is oil and 30 billion barrels of oil are used every single year. In 2005, the United States of America consumed 21,930,000 barrels of oil in a single day. The production, distribution, refinement and retailing of petroleum make the petroleum industry the largest profit making industry in the world. In America we pay a gasoline tax for the gasoline we buy. This gasoline tax is collected by the Federal Highway Trust fund and is used to pay for road maintenance and other transportation projects or needs here in our country. Therefore, gasoline tax can be described as a “user’s fee”. You drive on the roads, which increases wear and tear on the roads, so you pay the tax on your gasoline in order to maintain the roads. There has been a tax on gasoline since 1919. The initial tax rate was only 1 cent on the gallon, but today, more then 50 years later, we pay around 18-19 cents of federal tax on every gallon of gasoline we purchase. State gasoline tax is a different thing altogether. The average state tax for gasoline is about 28-29 cents on the gallon. So all together we pay about 48 cents of tax per gallon of gasoline purchased here in the United...
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...January 2015 Current Gasoline Prices The supply of gasoline is largely determined by the price of oil. The price of oil can be affected by both supply and demand. Things that affect the supply of oil include wars, terrorist attacks, industrial accidents, weather near offshore drilling rigs and the actions of oil cartels such as OPEC. If any of these things interfere with the supply of oil, it may cause the price of oil to rise, and therefore cause the price of gasoline to rise. In the current state, the market is flooded with oil supply and manufacturing seems to keep on producing. When the market is flooded, the gas prices fall, as in our current case, fall drastically to numbers we haven’t seen in years. We have not seen a decline this drastic since the 1980’s. Demand also affects the price of oil. Increasing demand for oil by developing countries such as China and India can cause prices to rise. Financial speculators can also influence the price of oil. They do this by buying oil in anticipation of future gains in the price of oil. If many speculators buy oil, the oil price will rise rapidly. These occurrences will increase the price of gasoline. If the price of gas falls, consumers spend less of their money on gas. Consumer incomes do not vary at the same rate as gas prices. The price elasticity of demand for gas is very low, so demand for gas will remain fairly constant, even for large changes in the price of gas. The most important impact the price of gasoline has on the economy...
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...includes unemployment price level and national income(Miller, p.3, 2014). For example, in Microeconomics topics studied in this...
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...added tax, a range of excise duties on oil, tobacco and alcohol and fuel duty. VAT is levied on the sale of goods by registered businesses. Businesses add VAT to the price they charge when they provide goods and services to business customers - and non-business customers. There are different VAT rates, depending on the goods or services that are being provided. At the moment there are three rates: standard rate – 20%, reduced rate - 5 %, zero rate - 0 %. The standard rate of VAT is the rate that's charged on most goods and services in the UK. Some examples of reduced-rate are domestic fuel and power, energy-saving material and children's car seats. The examples of zero-rated items are food, books and newspapers, children’s clothes and shoes, public transport. Excise duty is paid on alcohol, tobacco and fuel. This is paid on top of VAT and UK is high relative to most EU countries. These taxes are levied by the government for a number of reasons – among them as part of a strategy to curb pollution and improve the environment. Some of the reasons for using indirect taxes should be briefly mentioned. Indirect taxes may assist in the redistribution of income, though various unfortunate side-effects were existed. Also, indirect taxes may be able to correct for market imperfections, such as the effects of monopoly on the supply of particular goods and the existence of externalities ignored by producers. In addition, where people are thought to under-estimate the dangers...
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...marketers and to large commercial and industrial consumers, as well as to the spot market. The company has operations in more than 20 US states. The phase open to the greatest number of efficiency improvements is the pipeline transport of crude oil. Once the crude oil is in the pipeline it will take about eight to ten days to reach the refinery. “The Capeline Pipeline is a major thoroughfare for crude oil in the U.S., transporting up to one million barrels of crude oil a day…at an average speed of four miles per hour…” (“The time it takes,” n.d.). Transporting oil through pipelines is more economical than transporting over land. If Marathon improves the throughput rate of crude oil delivery they will be able to refine more barrels of gasoline and other petroleum products a day. As previously stated the pipeline can transport up to one million barrels of crude oil a day, and according to marathon.com their refinery network has a crude oil throughput capacity of 1,142,000 barrels per day. Improving the pipeline transport will improve the operating and production efficiency. Discuss the relationship...
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...……………………………………………………………………………….. | 9 | References …………………………………………………………………………………………….. | 11 | Introduction Overview Cousin Edgar needs to understand/decide if he should invest in buying two gas stations. He must consider the high costs of pursuing this idea on business and to try to recover his costs quickly. If the cost of gasoline is taken as a measuring rod then he needs to understand if he can earn enough to recover the costs of investing. Starting a gas station business can be one of the best decisions Cousin Edgar can make as an entrepreneur. He can either set up new gas stations or buy gas stations for sale. If he decides to buy one then he must have some knowledge about how to buy a gas station and if he is planning to set up new gas stations on his own then he is going to need to do some serious research as to how he can go from start to launch. He needs to consider doing lots of research and checking out numerous gas stations for sale before starting up. One of the first steps is to choose a location and find a property. It is important to find a location with the necessary driver demand for fuel and convenience store items is probably the most vital step. Gas station requires a high start-up costs and operating costs, with a high volume of sales, or it will...
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