Its called a free market economy. Gas prices reflect the price of oil. Oil is a commodity. When people want to buy more oil than is available, demand exceeds supplies and value increases. Remember Beanie Babies? Same concept, different story.
204666
the oil company reported an all time high profit over 84 million, it is not supply and demand,the irs gave oil companies millions of dollars in tax breaks this year, how many millions of dollars in tax breaks did the working poor or the working middle class recieve, it is who has the highly payed lobbyist , who makes the biggest political contributions and who's interests are being looked after by the current administration which coincidentally includes some oil company investors there is nothing free about this type of democracy
26775
Gas prices are set based on supply and demand. If more people are using gas or there is a lower amount of gas being produced then the prices will go up.\n\nThe recent increase in prices is probably due to the growing tension with Iran. If for some reason the oil from Iran is cut off, there will be less production.
132457
Check out gold and other commodity markets.  See Newmont Mining as an example of a gold company.  The oil companies are also producers of crude oil so they get to charge the current market rate for crude oil.  Major oil companies tend to be vertically integrated so folks don't see the commodity side of the business.
177284
Gas stations are getting rich and taking advantage of the gasoline "shortage".\n\n\nDid you know that in Venezuela gas is only 14 cents per gallon!
259516
wow, this issue is so big. one cause is that the world needs more and more fuel, chine is emerging as a large user now. Americans for so long bought gas guzzlers and build huge houses using copious amounts of energy. a cartel controls most of the worlds oil supply and can manipulate supplies. oil is sold on a stock market and more people want to buy stock in it then sell so the price goes up, and there is fear of a shortage which makes the price higher. any questions, you could use any one of these reasons or a combination of them. good luck
586938
Yes, I read the same article.  Basically, it lets you buy gas that cheap because those people paid for the gas a few years ago.  The ones near 1 were probably before 2000?   And there are going to be a few near 2 dollars from a few years back.\n\nThere's always the risk that you have to wait for the prices to come back up if you locked in your gas at a relatively high price.  You're also spending money now instead of later, so the person gets your money and earns interest on it.
38262
Price control should only be to prevent gouging.  When dealing with economics, its best to let the market find its equilibrium point.  But during a natural disaster the supply of food and gas become inelasic, because people want to servive the disaster, and are willing to pay $100 for a gallon of water.  The government interferes and controls prices to save the economy (if people spend all of their money surviving a natural disaster, they will have none to start over after their homes and jobs are gone.).
637484
Well, we'll end up paying more for what we have. It's basic economics of supply and demand. Look at fuel prices. They cut the supply, and we pay more, yet we still pay.
198796
GOODS and service tax\ntaxes are not unnecessary!\nif you don't like the price of gas stop driving everywhere, use the bus, bike,&/or walk\nI hope the price goes up even higher so people will stop wasting this resource!
279433
There has simply been a ban on building new refineries for 25 years, and the capacity to refine crude oil has not kept up with demand for gasoline. The supply of crude oil, and crude oil inventories are ample. But the ability for the refineries to produce gasoline from the crude oil is at a maximum, and this time of year some of them shut down for maintenance (30-60 days), so gasoline supplies are even tighter.\n\nIn a free market, no matter the commodity, when Demand is greater than the Supply, the price goes up.
552442
The other guy hit the nail on the head with cheap.  In its crude form, oil can carry a lot of energy and is relatively stable.  Spills are critical though.  We are "married" to oil in a sense because we have a network of pipelines through the country.  Some of the other advantages of oil are the number of by products that we get from oil.  piratically the whole interior of your car is made from petro-plastics, as are shopping bags, laptops, etc.  So you get a lot of bang for the buck.
527841
If pols could control gas prices, it would always be cheap.\nIf oil cos could control prices it would always be expensive.\nWhat can we conclude from this?
579562
Inflation.  Today's high gas prices are caused not by shortages, as the world is awash with oil.  The current pricing is driven by distribution.  Any disruption of the distribution process creates shortages, which lead to scarcity and high prices.  Current oil prices are driven by speculation in the oil commodities market.  At some point, fuel alternatives will be developed, and prices will abate.  When that happens, speculators holding high priced oil futures contracts will lose money.  The propensity is to keep prices high to avoid loss.  When, and if oil production in offshore Gulf of Mexico come back on line, oil prices will drop, probably sharply.\nThe price of petroleum affects every aspect in the production of economic goods and services, worldwide.
221360
That's so true.  \n\nAlso, when you go to grocery stores, don't you notice estrange produce and you wonder how do you eat it?\n\nIt is all about the money.......and to get us thinking in something else instead of other problems as the gas prices...
174544
... they are part of it...you can't disagree that a billion people is a large market... but I don't think it's trippling gas prices... I think it's only part of the issue... I think a large part of it is the saber rattling in Iran... it's creating a fear based inflation...
243492
In part, gas prices are determined by supply and demand.  Prices are also determined by how much foreign oil is purchased and then passed on to consumers. \nPoliticians and oil companies would have us believe that these two are the primary reasons for the increase in fuel prices, but this is because most Americans do not really look very hard at facts surrounding them on a daily basis, or do not put them together. The 1950's had gas at around 22 cents a gallon.  Yet even with our greater technology, the much increased ease of production, transport, and refinement should have us keeping pace with prices still around $1.00, with the cost of exploration being one of the few legitimate reasons for increasing the prices...of course combined with the reasons previously mentioned.  But this is not the case.  \nWhen hurricane Katrina approached the coast, the price of gas rose over 10 cents a gallon - before - the hurricane had done any damage.  Afterward, when production resumed its normal levels, prices did not subside.  Instead they continued to rise.  The second hurricane did little or no damage, but prices rose again...in the same pattern.  For a dozen years or more, oil companies have followed a pattern of every six to eight months, raising prices until public outcry became strong enough, then when it was lowered ten or twelve cents the public sighed a great sigh; while not really paying attention to the fact that the price was still ten or fifteen cents higher than it was.  \nThe hurricanes, combined with the merger of giant oil companies into mega corporations have removed the checks and balances that healthy competition made in keeping oil prices down.  From 14 to 36 billion in profits, these oil companies answer to no one.  Their CEO's hide under the guise that no one can specifically point their finger at one of them and lay the blame, and our government cannot do anything to one and not the others, so nothing is done.  The oil companies state to the senators that their prices have increased slower than any other comodity.  Yet the simple reason behind this eludes our leaders...the reason...because the oil companies are the catalyst for the rise in every other price.  A farmer, with a tiny edge of profit, cannot afford to absorb the gas prices as they are, and so the prices snowball into every other thing linked to them.  So, why do prices rise?  Well, aside from the legitimate reasons mentioned in the beginning, it is because there is no one who tells them that they have to stop.
252832
Production of oil is rather constant, normally. The price to get that oil to market is fairly constant, normally. The trading of oil futures is a BET that the normal DEMAND for the oil will change OR that the supply of that oil will change.\n\nIf oil-use became obsolete then oil prices would be near zero.....lots of oil available but nobody would need it or would want to pay much money for it.\n\nIf demand is HIGH and there is a shortage, or PERCEIVED future shortage of supply, then the prices rise to lock in the availability of the oil........like a guaranteed sale at a perceived good deal.\n\nInvestors always buy oil at high prices because one of two reasons........they need it RIGHT NOW and pay the going rate.....or they think prices will go even HIGHER and they try to hedge the increasing prices by buying it at what they imagine is a low price.\n\nWar makes availability important and uncertain. High demand and a fast-growing GLOBAL economy makes availability scarce.\n\nIf/when Chinese people like French wine......prices will sky-rocket because one billion new wine drinkers have hit the market. If they like orange juice, shrimp, milk, whatever the prices will go ballistic.\n\nBuilding materials for our roads and houses will be unaffordable if the Chinese need too much of them for their projects.\n\nGet ready for a tough ride.........we just need to be able to tighten our belts and create the technologies to profit from the new demands and the tightening supplies!!!!