Oil Executives Go Before Congress to Defend Large Profits

[blueovalfan]

^stake
...steak is food[/quote

sorry my bad, let me dust off my english book.

 

[PSUCOBRA96]

take over the oil companies, time to fed. regulate them all, they are monopolies and need to be disbanded for the good of the country and world

 

[supachargd2k5]

You can go to www.gasbuddy.com and enter a zip code and it will give you the cheapest and the most expensive in your area.

 

[MassCobra]

take over the oil companies, time to fed. regulate them all, they are monopolies and need to be disbanded for the good of the country and world

The oil companies run this country so they are calling all the shots but I would place most of the blame for high prices on OPEC.

 

[Common]

The oil companies run this country so they are calling all the shots but I would place most of the blame for high prices on OPEC.

Excellent and the fact that Bush has been sticking his military dick in most of the countries of OPEC, what do you think was going to happen?

World is NOT blind.

 

[pan7eraboyca]

This is the most UnAmerican thread in the history of threads. Complaining about a company making money. I'm disgusted. Bush got rid of Maddas for a reason. Reap the rewards!!!!

 

[Zorabot]

Did the oil company testify under oath this time, or just lie again ?
If the government ran the oil companies the price per gallon would probably be even more expensive. And thats socialism anyway.
Some banking going that way now maybe America is destined to be something like the Soviet Union.

Buy a fuel pincher if gas prices are hurting you that much.
Pretty simple, use less and save more.

 

[RFH]

I love how everyone always complains about ethanol and alt energy subsidies but yet when oil companies get just as much or more tax breaks, they conveniently forget/look the other way. Hypocrites...
Oh, 1 other thing the Bush and the Saudis (Bin Ladens) have been in bed together forever, look it up.

 

[G:342]

It's actually been going down here a bit. From 3.15 to 3.07.

 

[VetteC501]

There is a difference between making profits, and making excessive profits. However some of the higher pricing is due to the fact that the higher the prices, the less consumers will purchase. Therefore extending the life of the remaining oil on the Earth. I still wish gas was around $1 a gallon, driving is just too fun!

 

[BLOWN PONY]

There is a difference between making profits, and making excessive profits. However some of the higher pricing is due to the fact that the higher the prices, the less consumers will purchase. Therefore extending the life of the remaining oil on the Earth. I still wish gas was around $1 a gallon, driving is just too fun!

I'm guessing from your rides, gas money is not somthing you lose sleep over...

 

[piss&vinegar]

I regret ever voting for him. I cannot bring myself to vote for a Democrat though. This country has been sold to the highest bidder which makes me sad.
I would just like for someone up in the oil industry to just come out and say, "we want to make more money and it has nothing to do with refineries, Katrina or China/India and the price you pay at the pump is the balance to keep you buying gas without going to look elsewhere!". The reason the oil industry uses for the price hike disturbs me more than the price itself. Just be honest and I could respect that.

 

[harry gilbert]

go on mapquest and you can see the highest and lowest prices in the country. i looked at it yesterday and gas in i think michigan was $2.56 while gas for me here in georgia is $3.40, and even worse gas in so-cal is close to $4.50. why are the prices so different? it's about time someone began regulating prices IMO

Please tell me where in Michigan gas is selling for $2.56... it's $3.25 for regular, $3.45 premium minimum around Detroit.....

 

[Top_Fuel]

Oil Company Profits: Just Who Is Gouging Whom?

by Alexander Green, Investment Director, The Oxford Club


The new speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, calls oil company profits "obscene."

And at first blush, many would agree. Over the past 12 months, for example, ExxonMobil has made pre-tax profits of $164 billion on sales of $369.5 billion. That's a lot.

But are big oil company profits bad?

Hardly. Companies exist to maximize profits. Profits are what keep workers employed. They keep companies innovating, creating new products and services. They keep the economy humming and the country strong. And they allow you and I to invest and secure our financial future.

Even the school teacher who plunks some of her retirement account in an S&P 500 Index fund benefits from Exxon's rising share price - which is a direct result of Exxon's rising profits.

Many will argue that there is nothing wrong with an oil company's profits, per se. It's just that Exxon is gouging us at the pump. They're making too much. But are they? After all, Exxon can't dictate gasoline prices. Markets determine the price of oil. It's supply and demand that sets the price at the pump.



Oil Companies, Profits, and the Courts

Some Americans are skeptical on this point, I know. So I direct them to last year's Supreme Court decision. The court ruled unanimously that oil companies have not been colluding to set prices.

Oil prices are high today because the economies of huge nations like China and India are developing rapidly. More oil is being demanded in the world market and there are few new sources of supply.

Hurricane Katrina destroyed a lot of oil processing capacity around the Gulf of Mexico too, so there has been less oil being processed. When less oil is supplied, gasoline prices rise.

What does the average oil company make today on the sale of a gallon of gas? Ten cents.

The federal tax on gasoline, on the other hand, is nearly twice that. Then there's state gasoline taxes. (If you live in New York, for example, you're paying 68 cents a gallon in taxes.)

If Exxon is gouging us at ten cents a gallon, what exactly is the federal government doing to us at 18.4 cents a gallon?

Who Is Gouging Whom?

After all, Exxon has to compete with other oil companies both here and abroad. It has to spend billions on exploration, billions more on development, and further billions on refining and transportation.

As a result, it's hardly making money hand over fist. Earnings at Exxon rose 9% last year but fell 4% in the fourth quarter, underscoring the challenges of rising costs and lower commodity prices.

And Exxon's profit margins are only 10.7%. Profit margins at Microsoft, on the other hand, are 26%. Perhaps we should pass a windfall profits tax on software companies.

Because that's what Big Oil's opponents really want: a bigger federal gasoline tax. Why? To fund the search for alternative sources of energy, such as ethanol and nanotechnology.

That's a fine sentiment. But will throwing around tens of billions of dollars in federal research grants really create alternative energy sources? If that were the case, shouldn't Uncle Sam give grants to:
Dell… to create more powerful computers?
Boeing… to build faster aircraft?
McDonalds… to make low-fat French fries that taste good?

The federal government doesn't need to do this, of course. These oil companies will continue to make higher quality products at better prices on their own. Why? Because they exist to maximize profits. (Profits, incidentally, that provide much of the tax base for the U.S. government.)

Trust me, we will have alternative energy sources eventually. Many scientists believe that near incredible advances in nanotechnology will allow us to solve all our energy needs with solar power within 20 years.

But it won't be the federal government that solves the problem. It will be the private sector - and its relentless drive for profits.

Good Investing,
Alex

Source: http://www.investmentu.com/IUEL/2007/20070323.html

 

[1993R]

When does Congress stand before the American poeple to explain why we have to rely on oil?

That's the real question. Both parties get a big fat F for sitting around and doing nothing for the last 20 years.

 

[ViciousJay]

That's the real question. Both parties get a big fat F for sitting around and doing nothing for the last 20 years.

you know why? cuz guess whos paying for thier campaign money?? ill bet its the oil boys

 

[SID297]

How about we move the subsidies (and other tax benefits) from the oil companies over to private individuals who install solar panels on their houses? That should make conservatives happy because net taxes will not be raised, the environment will be better protected reduced use of fossil fuels, more jobs will be created, and consumption would be spurred by the increase in disposable income. The liberals would love it for many of the same reasons.

In the short term fuel prices may increase. However, in the long run, as automakers produce more electric vehicles, the demand for oil based fuels should decrease and prices should stabilize.

 

[westtx47]

Yeah, unfortunately folks have a difficult time realizing that theres more to gas prices than supposed "greed". OPEC, along with other economic influences, have a lot to do with it.

Don't think that extra 18 billion in profit will help them explore? Think its really just greed? The latest estimate by the U.S. Minerals Management Service is 1 BILLION U.S. dollars to develop a deepwater field capable of production.(yes, this is offshore drilling).

To date, Shell has spent 554 million dollars just to obtain the right to drill(lease) in the gulf. I'm not 100% positive when they started counting the amount but I believe its since 1/1/08. Heaven forbid should they be in the right business at the right time, right? These leases, combined with salaries for the thousands of employees, insurance, and even helicopter fees(up to $200,000) for a single round trip to a rig and back - influence cost.

Now concerning Bush's supposed hand in the oil industry...someone may have to explain, because I don't see it. Does he have minerals on his ranch here in Texas? Yep. So do hundreds or thousands of other families in the state.(Interesting read: Ozona - Millionaire Row).

Also:

This beauty of a rig is billed out to Shell for hundreds of thousands of dollars A DAY. Read up on it at - http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/extreme_machines/4255407.html

Off Topic - Does anyone else find that thing amazing?

 

[gump]

I'd like to work for one of those oil companies.


good companies that make huge profits provide good health insurance, employee benefits, retirement, etc....


Americans, generally speaking, want Government to be their Messiah in this oil crisis.

Americans don't want to give up their gas guzzlers.

They don't want to reduce their daily driving by carpooling, finding more than one reaon to go out. (kill 2 birds with one stone as they say).

Americans don't want to give anything up as far as their daily routines, instead, they want Government to be their salvation.

Citizens, do your part FIRST, then point the fingers at Government.

 

[gump]

Yeah, unfortunately folks have a difficult time realizing that theres more to gas prices than supposed "greed". OPEC, along with other economic influences, have a lot to do with it.

Don't think that extra 18 billion in profit will help them explore? Think its really just greed? The latest estimate by the U.S. Minerals Management Service is 1 BILLION U.S. dollars to develop a deepwater field capable of production.(yes, this is offshore drilling).

To date, Shell has spent 554 million dollars just to obtain the right to drill(lease) in the gulf. I'm not 100% positive when they started counting the amount but I believe its since 1/1/08. Heaven forbid should they be in the right business at the right time, right? These leases, combined with salaries for the thousands of employees, insurance, and even helicopter fees(up to $200,000) for a single round trip to a rig and back - influence cost.

Now concerning Bush's supposed hand in the oil industry...someone may have to explain, because I don't see it. Does he have minerals on his ranch here in Texas? Yep. So do hundreds or thousands of other families in the state.(Interesting read: Ozona - Millionaire Row).


This beauty of a rig is billed out to Shell for hundreds of thousands of dollars A DAY. Read up on it at - http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/extreme_machines/4255407.html

Off Topic - Does anyone else find that thing amazing?

^^^ this guy has been doing his homework & has a good unerstanding of economics as taught by a non-marxist professor.:rockon::rockon::rockon:

Top Fuel = post # 34, excellent read, should be common knowledge, but not for the blame government when you can't explain economics 101.

The same goes for the pharmaceutical companies, they use profits to enhance further advancements in medicine.
the latest example, the over the counter paternity tests = lots of $$$$ spent on research to come up with this modern convenience.