Given the prospect of $4-plus gasoline this summer, what's an American to do? Beyond switching to a higher-MPG vehicle, you can consider buying some oil stocks with plenty of upside potential. Here are five candidates, if your risk appetite is hardy enough.
Sky-high oil and gas prices risk tipping the U.S. economy back into recession. But Washington isn't powerless when it comes to oil prices: Here are five things that the federal and state governments can do that would quickly reduce pain at the pump.
And that means it may be time for owners of gas-thirsty SUVs and cars to start considering the switch so many Americans are loath to make: to a far more fuel-efficient vehicle. Looking out over the next several years, it's hard to see oil -- and gasoline -- falling back to earlier lows.
Most forecasts expect the month will show 3% growth or better over the same time last year when major merchants report their tallies on Thursday. One thing seems clear: Higher-end households were more willing to spend than lower- and middle-income ones.
As pump prices shoot higher each day, signs of motorists rationing gas purchases have begun springing up around the country. People are buying fewer gallons per fill up and paying more in cash than with credit. Clearly, motorists are already cutting back.
Oil prices fell below $97 per barrel Monday -- from more than $100 a few days ago -- on reports that Libya's still exporting oil. But gasoline prices continued to rise, jumping 8 cents over the weekend.
As in the summer of 2008, when prices broke $4 a gallon, big jumps at the gas pump may give car buyers reason to pause and cause vehicle sales to stall. At least the carmakers now have more fuel-efficient fleets, except for Chrysler, which is still catching up.
Events in the Mideast have, once again, revealed the U.S. economy's vulnerability to an oil shock. Now more than ever, the nation must reduce its consumption of oil, especially from abroad, and become energy self-sufficient. And the way to do it is with our abundant domestic sources of natural gas.
What might happen to the price of oil and how will this affect U.S. economic growth? Here are three possible scenarios.
Americans could see gasoline spiking 10% to 18% higher in coming weeks as a result of the unrest in the Middle East, but they're unlikely to rocket as high as some are predicting -- unless the uprisings spread to Saudi Arabia. In that case, all bets are off.
Brent crude traded at $107.68 today as West Texas crude prices moved to $94.24. Oil prices don't immediately transfer to gasoline pump prices, but they surely have an impact as crude moves through refineries into finished products. AAA data showed gas prices hit an average of $3.171 last week across the U.S.
Proponents of the peak-oil theory can muster studies and statistics backing their claim that declining global oil output is nigh. Critics point to new technologies and unconventional oil fields as saviors. Either way, a return to the days of $1.50-a-gallon gasoline isn't going to happen.
Unless there's a breakthrough in battery technology, gasoline will remain the primary auto fuel in the U.S. for years. But our dependence on imported oil comes with a major risk of supply disruption. And the U.S. has a domestic alternative that's ready and reliable: natural gas.
