With the numbers not posting before I left work, and having an 18 month old to contend with when I got home, I did not finish my numbers until this morning. It wasn’t the only thing I forgot yesterday.
We are in spike territory as of last night. Prices have been falling into the $3.40s on the low side in most places, and the spot was following it down. There was a bump up in the spot yesterday which has caused the spike line to be crossed. Look for prices to spike up (if they haven’t already) as it’s also a Thursday, the most popular spike day of the week.
Looks like Speedway is going to $3.659 this morning.
what will happen now with the earthquake in Japan?
Quotes from today’s AP article titled “Oil prices slide for fifth trading day: Oil drops with economists uncertain how Japan disaster will affect fuel prices and oil demand”
“Japan, the world’s third-largest oil consumer”
“Three of five major oil refineries have shut down”
“Analysts expect the country’s energy demand will fall in the short-term. Japan will likely compensate for the shutdown of nuclear power plants by running other generators with oil, which should boost crude imports.”
“Japan could boost crude imports by about 300,000 barrels per day while its energy infrastructure is hampered by the loss of nuclear power.”
NYMEX RBOB is currently down to $2.9452. At this rate, West Michigan retail gas prices will probably fall all this week.
Here are more quotes from an updated edition of the same article:
“Japan consumes about 4.4 million barrels of oil per day, most of it imported. Only the U.S. and China consume more.”
“once Japan begins to rebuild, it will boost imports of coal, natural gas, diesel and other refined fuels. And it will need more than before to compensate for the loss of part of its nuclear power industry.”
“”Demand for petroleum products is going to soar,” said analyst and trader Stephen Schork.”
“The Japanese may favor oil over natural gas in the short term, according to Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research.”
“Japan’s trade minister said Monday that the government will release enough oil from the country’s reserves to cover three days of demand”
“It may also seek more refined fuels like diesel from the U.S. and India.”
“”The U.S. still has a surplus of both gasoline and distillate supplies with which to meet any such upswing in export activity,””
WOW!
NYMEX Oil and RBOB have really taken a plunge.
Gasoline futures are currently down 13.43¢ to $2.8260.
Oil futures are currently down $3.71 to $97.48.
Much more so than yesterday, West Michigan retail gas prices are likely to fall all week.
Oil 97.19 -4.00 -3.95% on 3/15/11 – what are the chances gas prices are gonna drop like 20 cents a pop or more like they go up when oil goes up a couple of dollars a barrel??? NOT! One to two cents, if we’re lucky. And this price is at the open of the market.
West Michigan gas prices have fallen up to 20¢ in the past 6 days, from $3.659 on Thursday to as low as $3.459 today. They’ll probably continue falling through the weekend into the $3.30s.
However, NYMEX RBOB is up 7.60¢ right now to $2.8789. At this point, I’d expect West Michigan gas prices to next reset (increase) on Thursday, March 24. If RBOB goes above $2.90 (and stays there), then we might see a reset on Tuesday, March 22.
“Thanks” to the multiple disasters in Japan, we might just make it to Memorial Day without seeing $4 gas, so you can send your savings to http://www.redcross.org/
I can’t believe we are in “crisis’ again. The jingle I wrote (musical venting) is even more timely because those pics are from the 2008 “gas crisis” and I lived (and drove) through the 1977 and 1979 crises.
We were supposed to “run out of gas” 25 yrs. after 1979 – Do the math. Never happened.
Well, there you have it. We we go to gas lines. I sure hope not. I don’t want to go through that again! You haven’t lived till you are sitting on line 3+ hours on an “even” day (last # on your license plate is an even number, so you get gas on Mon/Wed/Fri.
RBOB is currently $2.8200.
Two Admiral retailers in Lowell, Michigan are down to $3.449.
There are some really low prices in Adrian, Michigan, with 10 stations at or below $3.429. The lowest are Meijer and Murphy USA (Wal*Mart) on U. S. 223 at $3.359. West Michigan could be seeing that price by Monday or Tuesday, barring something in the news.
RBOB settled at $2.9506 today, up 13.06¢ from yesterday.