Introduction
Though most consumers may not realize it, the price of oil is not the primary determination for gasoline prices. It is more complicated that what most consumer may realize. The price of gasoline is determined by a number of variables. Things such as the supply, demand, inflation and taxes. Thought most consumer think that demand is the main reason for the increase of gas price they would be mistake. It does play a part, but there are larger variables that have a greater hand in the increase of prices. Taxation and inflation can make more significant increase than the demand of gas. This became for evident doing the US recent recession when gas prices skyrocketed due to oil demand and supply. Most states gave consumer a large relief by waving gas tax for
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The fiscal policy has two main goals, to reduce unemployment and encourage economic growth.
Unemployment
High unemployment has a negative impact on the economy. Within the convenience and fuel retail industry there is not much of a lost when it comes to unemployment. Within the past 10 year there has been some miner ups and downs when it com to unemployment within the industry. Though in recent years since 2011 there has been steady growth. It is estimated that there are 919.9 thousand employed within the industry.
Employment, Hours, and Earnings from the Current Employment Statistics survey (National)
Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2006 869.9 869.6 865.2 868.1 859.6 864.9 865.7 860.5 861.3 859.4 861.2 861.2
2007 862.4 861.7 865.7 863.3 862.7 862.2 861.1 860.0 865.5 861.3 859.1 851.3
2008 854.6 855.1 855.9 848.2 842.3 845.0 841.4 838.5 832.6 833.5 834.7 832.6
2009 831.1 831.1 829.0 827.0 824.1 824.2 823.7 825.9 823.3 823.2 819.4 818.6
2010 818.0 816.9 816.2 817.7 818.3 816.8 821.4 818.5 820.9 820.1 820.5
The rise of crude oil has also effected the sales of trucks. With comapnays no buying or spending as much on a truck has hurt the econonmy.
There has been some talk about an “oil-extraction tax.” With this tax in place, it would force companies to fork out more of the tax instead of the consumer. If higher taxes are put in place for the producer ultimately they are not the ones paying the higher price the consumer is. Either way producers will receive revenue and in order to do that they will just raise their prices. The demand for fuel is based on necessity forcing consumers to pay outrageous prices because they need it. In addition to the tax, oil companies would have to disclose more information about their supplies and prices. Since the companies have market power, some believe with the tax in place it would reduce the price of the good.
The demand of gasoline has increased steadily over the last twenty years. In 1981 the U.S. averaged 6.5 million barrels of gasoline consumption per day. By comparison, in 2004 the U.S. averaged 9.2 million barrels of gasoline consumption per day. For most of this time period, gas prices stayed relatively the same. This is because the U.S. refineries increased their production to meet the demand and maintain the equilibrium price. Also during this same time period worldwide demand for crude oil increased 27%. Crude oil producers also increased their production to meet the demand keeping prices the same.
The American people are so dependent on oil that the supply and demand increases the cost every time at the pump. If people are willing to pay the four dollars a gallon, then the stores will charge it. The less fuel efficient your car is, the more you are going to the pump. The Hummer H2 for example, gets 12.3 miles per gallon. There
There might be many possible solutions in fixing the problem of rising in the gas prices. If we look at the governments, they should have a very big responsibility on their shoulders. Provision of a strong public policy particularly regarding the gasoline management, with a strong and capable leadership which is capable enough to enforce implementation of these policy rules is the major responsibility of the governments to control any sort of price hikes in gasoline. Corporations are also very much responsible in whole the scenario. They
To answer the question of whether oil companies make unwarranted profits off the inflated sales of gasoline, we first need to have some understanding of how the oil market works. This is to try get to the bottom of what really makes oil prices fluctuate with such a high frequency, which results in worldwide ramifications. The most basic or raw material for the oil market is crude oil, also known as petroleum, which other oil products are extracted from. This happens to be the world’s most traded product.
Consumer demand for gasoline is an incredibly strong market force, strong enough that many consumers continue to buy the fuel regardless of market price. As of May 10, 2004, average gasoline prices are at an all-time high of $1.941 per gallon across the nation, and up to $2.21 in California 7. Yet
At this point, the nation should be able to produce enough oil for its citizens. Dropping the price right away would only repeat the same situation: a high demand with no actual profits for the oil companies. The government should instill a price floor of oil to keep the demand of the oil low and to control black market on oil. The price floor would bring up the price of oil up by a certain degree, and, according to the figure 1-2, decrease the demand. Maintaining a price floor can be a costly operation for the government, and one way to draw a fund for maintaining such policy is to mandate a tax, even a small amount, on other products such as corn
A recent price shift that all American drivers have experienced is the constant fluctuations of gas prices. As I turned 16 in 2013 gas prices were on the rise ranging from $3-$4 across the nation. For many Americans it caused them to make economical decisions on what vehicle to buy taking on extra jobs to pay for gas, cutting out vacations because of the high gas expense. During 2013 I would even struggle filling up my dodge pickup every week and realizing how much money I was spending just on gas. However, in 2016 prices have decreased to $1-$2 dollars. If we look back on the history of gas prices we can analyze that reason gas prices change so often is based on the amount of crude oil. Since oil is the main input for producing gasoline, so if there is a rise in oil price than gasoline price must rise as well. Many factors go into affecting gas prices, but one example in particular is the detriment of
People endlessly discuss the cost of gas. Whether gas costs are rising or falling, car owners and financial specialists alike will point out gas costs as an indicator of the shifting condition of the economy. Market analysts would surmise that a surge in fuel costs would prompt more carpooling and less driving altogether. However, generally, fuel consumption has had a moderately stable demand with shifting costs. This is what influences the demand for fuel. No matter the cost if you have a car and you want to use it, you have to fuel it. People must go about their lives to complete their everyday tasks, and therefore pay little mind to the cost of fuel. Subsequently, cost has little effect on demand.
Each time a person residing in the United States pulls up to a gas station to fill their tank it costs more money. This is particularly true of the past four years. Many focus the blame on the American Government but there are a multitude of factors causing gasoline prices to be so astronomically high. Middle eastern war, environmental precautions and government all seem to have a hand in the price we pay at the pump.
Just because the government say it's in the interest of the people doesn't mean they really are. Most people think that if the government mandates gasoline then the price of gas must decrease; that's not always the case. In fact there are chances where the price of gas can increase. There are many debates arguing about how much power the government has over us. Giving them the opportunity to mandate gasoline is giving them even more power. If the government see that they are losing fuel, then they may increase the price above the equilibrium to save fuel.
Many people think that it is corporate greed and that putting a cap on gas prices would solve the problem. Remember the 1970s, when people had to wait in long lines for gas? The reason for that was because many places didn 't have any gas to sell. Gas companies stopped selling gas to them because the gas companies couldn 't make a profit. They couldn 't make a profit because there was a cap on gas prices. Learn from
The consumption of the oil cause changes in the supply and demand. The United States produces 11 million barrels of oil every day. We are one of the biggest countries to have a big influence on the production and prices of the oil. The basic supply and demand theory explains that the if a product is produced more, the cheaper it should sell. If a country were to double the output of oil day, prices would fall and the Production is high, but the distribution of oil isn’t keeping up with the market. The United States builds an average of one oil refinery per 10 years. This is a net loss due to the fact construction has slowed down since 1970s. Since 1970s, the United States has 8 less oil refineries today. The reason why we are not oversupplied with cheap oil is because of the other countries’ higher net margin and the only operate at 62% of their capacity. Excess capacity is only there to meet future demand. With demand moving accordingly, oil prices will continue to be set mostly by the market — despite external players’ best efforts. (McFarlane)
Gasoline prices can be directly related to oil. In 2014, “a barrel of Brent crude cost $110,” but in 2015 it cost only “$60” (“The high cost of falling prices; Deflation.” Economist. 21 Feb. 2015: 69. eLibrary. Web. 22 Mar. 2016.). The barrel of crude oil was hence cut by “45%” and “in America the price of gasoline has fallen by 35%” (“The high cost of falling prices; Deflation.” Economist. 21 Feb. 2015: 69. eLibrary. Web. 22 Mar. 2016.). As you can see here because crude oil is a main component of gasoline, their prices correlate - meaning that when one price shifts downward the other will follow. Crude oil and gasoline are not the only products that have seen a decrease in value in the past few years. All around the United States and in many other areas of the world, the value of products are being slashed.