Super Sized Shammies...Holds 20x Its Weight In Liquid
--> RETAIL Price: $9.99 -- OUR Price: $2.99 <--
http://pd.gophercentral.com/u/3961/c/186/a/3289
------------------------------------------------------------
THE PROGRESSIVE REVIEW - April 5, 2010
What's Driving Up Oil Prices Again? Wall Street, Of Course
by: Kevin G. Hall
McClatchy Newspapers
Washington - Oil consumption has fallen, demand from U.S.
motorists for gasoline is flat at best and refiners that
turn crude into fuel are operating well below capacity.
Yet oil prices keep marching toward $90 a barrel, pushing
gasoline toward $3 a gallon in many markets, and prompting
American drivers to ask, "What gives?"
Blame it on the same folks who brought you $140 oil and
$4 gasoline in 2008: Wall Street speculators.
Experts attribute much of the recent rise in prices to
flows of speculative money into oil markets. These bets
are fueled by investor expectations that the U.S. and
global economies are poised to return to growth and
thus spark increased use of oil. Strong growth in China
supports the narrative of rising oil consumption and
tightening supplies.
"The thinking goes that rising stock (market) prices
implies expanding business activity, implies growing
energy demand, implies rising oil prices. I think you
can make that case, but it's awfully weak," said Michael
Fitzpatrick, vice president-energy for MF Global, a
financial firm that brokers the sale of contracts for
future delivery of oil.
While there are signs of U.S. economic recovery, such as
a slight uptick in consumption and strong manufacturing
data, there are plenty of ho-hum signs too, including
dismal construction spending and continued high unemploy-
ment.
"I just don't think if you look across the entire spectrum
of the macro-economy that it creates a picture of a grow-
ing body of incontrovertible evidence that there is a
strong, sustainable recovery. I just don't see it,"
Fitzpatrick said. "I think it should be closer to the
range we were seeing in late summer and early fall, $67
to $72" a barrel.
On the last day of July, oil traded at $67.50 a barrel and
gasoline sold at a nationwide average of $2.52 a gallon for
regular unleaded. On Thursday, oil prices settled at $84.87
on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and regular unleaded
gasoline averaged $2.80 a gallon and more than $3 on the
West Coast, according to the AAA.
"It's the story we've been talking about.... It's really
about oil being an attractive investment for investors
right now," said Troy Green, a AAA spokesman. "You've seen
quite a bit of money flooding into the oil markets because
of that."
------------------------------------------------------------
Crystal Nail File 2-Pack
The Latest Innovation In Nail Care...
Normal Price: $14.99
DEAL PRICE: $5.99 for two -- Get Two Sets (4 files) $9.98
Crystal Glass nail files are the perfect solution for
shaping both natural and artificial nails. The files are
very gentle on the natural nail and with regular use can
help prevent splitting and peeling and they give a lovely
smooth finish.
Extremely hygienic... unlike other nail files, the Crystal
Glass nail file is not porous and cannot absorb water and
create an environment for disease (bacterial or fungal).
Plus they can be disinfected, boiled or sterilized by any
known means or simply washed under hot running water.
Mostly you're going to love how they provide a smoother
filing process. NO MORE JAGGED EDGES...
Great for acrylic nails and in the place of a pumice stone.
These files feature two levels of abrasion.
http://pd.gophercentral.com/u/3553/c/120/a/3289
------------------------------------------------------------
What's different about today's price run-up from two or
three years ago is that oil is now in ample supply.
"If you look at the fundamentals right now, there is
certainly an abundance that is available (of oil) to the
market for the next 12 months or so. It's not a near-term
supply shortfall," said David Dismukes, the associate
director of the Center for Energy Studies at Louisiana
State University in Baton Rouge.
U.S. motorists and businesses consumed 18.69 million
barrels per day (bpd) of petroleum product last year.
That's projected to rise slightly this year to 18.89
million bpd. However, it remains far below peak consumption
of 20.80 million bpd in 2005.
The latest data from the Energy Information Administration,
the statistical arm of the Energy Department, shows that
as of mid-March, U.S. refiners were operating at 81.1
percent capacity. They're making eight gallons of gasoline
for every 10 they're capable of producing, a clear sign
that demand is down.
Perhaps the only argument that would justify rising prices
is that global consumption is expected to grow by 1.6
million bpd to 86.6 million bpd this year, according to
the Paris-based International Energy Agency.
Even so, there's 6 million bpd of oil that's shut-in, a
technical way of saying that recoverable oil is being
left in the ground by the world's oil producers.
"When you look at inventories and shut-in capacity, (oil)
prices today are above what those would indicate," said
Daniel Yergin, the author of "The Prize: The Epic Quest
for Oil, Money & Power," the recently updated Pulitzer
Prize-winning book that chronicles the history of oil.
When oil traded above $140 a barrel nearly two years ago
and pundits warned that the world was running out of oil,
Yergin suggested that a glut of oil would come onto the
market in 2010 and beyond. The 6 million bpd of oil now
on the sidelines suggests that he was right.
------------------------------------------------------------
Laptop Holder by FineLife
Sturdy, Stable, & Durable...
Normal Price: $24.99
DEAL PRICE: $9.99
With this Laptop Holder by FineLife you'll experience
better and more comfortable usage of your laptop. Slightly
elevate your laptop to get that correct angle. With up to
seven points of tilting or angle, adjust as you feel fit.
Improving your posture will greatly improve your product-
ivity as well.
And because your laptop will slightly be elevated, the free
flow of air below means the holder will help your laptop
cool down just a little. Added performance for your laptop,
you will get.
But what you may love most about it is the rotating base
which is great for presentations and meetings.
FEATURES:
- Adjustable angle, 10 to 16 degrees
- Rotating base
- Compatible with all Laptop sizes
- Heat dispersion effect
- Anti skid material at the base
- Size: 28 cm x 26 cm
- Lightweight but built strong... made of ABS Plastic
Grab your very own Laptop Holder for $9.99... you will love
it! http://pd.gophercentral.com/u/14507/c/120/a/3289=
------------------------------------------------------------
Today's spare production capacity is three times what it
was in 2004 and 2005, when supply actually was tight.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries signaled
this week its concerns about rising prices by not calling
for hard enforcement of production quotas by its members.
That suggested the cartel will tolerate an open-spigot
policy by its 12 members as needed to stabilize prices.
"While OPEC was silent on any threat to the recovery,
speculation continues that the cartel is deliberately
allowing members to exceed production quotas in order to
limit upward price pressure," wrote analyst Matt Robinson,
in a research report Thursday by forecaster Moody's
Economy.com.
Rising oil and gasoline prices are deja vu all over again
for Michael Masters. The hedge fund manager has crusaded
for legislation that would prevent so much speculative
money in the oil markets.
Wall Street is "gaming" the price of oil, he warns.
"If you're a bank, and you know there is going to be a
large amount of investor inflows into the commodities
market, you are going to position yourself ahead of them...
You want to be a seller at a higher price," explained
Masters, noting that large Wall Street banks invest for
themselves in these markets even as they also broker the
oil investments of others.
What's abundantly clear, he and others argue, is that an
oil contract's price today has little to do with the supply
of and demand for oil.
"It's a capital asset now. Once the majority of partici-
pants are capital-asset folks, common sense would tell
you it's going to be traded like a capital asset... and
consumers pay," Masters said. "It wasn't that way in the
past."
What can be done?
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is weighing a
proposal to put global limits on how many oil contracts
any one market player can buy or sell, and legislation
to revamp financial regulation that's expected to pass
Congress this year could force greater disclosure by oil
traders to regulators.
Neither, however, promises imminent relief at the pump.
------------------------------------------------------------
YOUR VIDEO SNACK BAR
Top Viewed Videos...
1. Marine Silent Marching
http://c.gophercentral.com/rO13
2. Man's Best Friend
http://c.gophercentral.com/2TYQ
3. Celebrities: Before and After Make-Up
http://c.gophercentral.com/49A3
4. Amos N´ Andy - In the IRS Office
http://c.gophercentral.com/iZUQ
5. The Muppets
http://c.gophercentral.com/sVqB
6. The Stones
http://c.gophercentral.com/XLr8
------------------------------------------------------------
ARCHIVES: http://progressivereview.gophercentral.com
Follow Your Favorite GopherCentral Publications on Twitter:
http://www.gophertweets.com/ More Coming Soon!
------------------------------------------------------------