June 13, 2004
FRIEDMAN'S LAW:
U.S. Gas Prices See First Drop of Year (PAUL CHAVEZ, 6/13/04, AP)
A boost in gasoline production and a dip in oil prices have led to the first nationwide drop this year in gas prices at the pump, an industry analyst said Sunday.The weighted national average price for all three grades of gasoline was $2.04 per gallon on Friday after rising more than 59 cents since mid-December, said Trilby Lundberg, who publishes the biweekly Lundberg Survey, which regularly polls nearly 8,000 gas stations across the United States.
The average price for all grades on the last survey in May was slightly above $2.10 a gallon.
"Whether for the rest of the summer gas prices will continue to trend down depends on OPEC's follow-through to increase oil output and how strong our gasoline demand turns out to be," Lundberg said Sunday. "We always consume the most in June, July and August."
The drop at the pump also reflects an effort by refiners to maximize their gasoline production and increase supply to meet summer driving demand.
As always the Fed will be doing the opposite of what it should be when it hikes rates shortly. Posted by Orrin Judd at June 13, 2004 11:51 PM
the increase has been priced in, so what's the downside? it won't be huge, so companies won't shy away from capital expenditure increases. individuals will start earning a larger return on their assets, especially those on fixed incomes, which means they'll feel more comfortable about their future. this leads to increased consumer spending, further increasing GDP growth, at least enough to balance out any sort of drop in business spending.
in essence, right now might be a decent time for a 25-50 basis point move, with the fed holding off until well after the election for the second move.
Posted by: poormedicalstudent at June 14, 2004 12:56 AMThat you're paying more than a fair rate when you borrow--which will disincline you to.
Posted by: oj at June 14, 2004 8:15 AM