The smart money has been predicting lately that gas prices would fall. Oil has been below $90 a barrel since early August and the International Energy Agency has cut its estimates for crude oil use for the year. But the price of a gallon of unleaded is the virtually the same as it was a year ago.
Dr. Roy Baumeister is a research psychologist who has studied the science of self-control for many years. He's also co-author of the new book Willpower. We asked him how you can boost your willpower when facing financial temptations and decisions. Here are his secrets.
If you're like the typical American, you probably have dozens of household appliances that you routinely leave plugged in even when they're not actively being used. But did you know that even when they're turned off, they can cost you money?
During the first quarter, it seemed cyclical companies would rule the roost in 2011. How things have changed! Defensive stocks have come roaring back. Oil is well off its highs, and growth estimates are coming down in the U.S. and China. In that context, how do you want to position your portfolio?
Investing is prone to manias and panics. Investors get excited as prices rise, and end up buying today what they should have bought years ago. The recent commodities sell-off reminded me of the rule I follow for commodities investing. Had you followed it, you'd have saved loads of money in 2008 and 2009 and made tons recently.
The refrigerator is the second-biggest electricity hog in most homes, so if you want to trim your power bill, it's a great place to start. The best solution is to ditch your old one for a new, energy-efficient model, but if that isn't in your budget, here are a few options.
Biofuels company Solazyme owns a unique process when it comes to converting algae into a fuel could replace the gas in your car -- a method that could be used to create oil on an extremely large scale and at an extremely low cost. The company has just announced it's going public: You might want to get in on the action.
Oil prices climbed again Friday following a drop in the dollar and continued jitters about shipments from the world's major oil suppliers. If the upward trend continues, experts say, gasoline prices could hit $4 a gallon across the U.S. this summer.
With U.S. gas prices near historic highs, Americans are anxious about the cost of filling up. But we still feel far less pain at the pump than drivers in many other developed nations. On the flip side, if you drive in the right world cities, you can still pay less than $1 a gallon.
As soon as oil prices rise, it takes little time before drivers begin to feel the pain at the pump. But it takes far longer for price decreases to reach consumers. Here's why.
The economy has had more than its share of trouble lately: Japan's earthquake comes on top of rising oil and food prices, political turmoil in the Middle East and a crop of government austerity measures. But investing opportunities lie hidden behind the bad news.
