Hypothetical question > the NE US, but you are way, way off on your claims of nat. gas prices
> being lower.
> , prices now are much higher than even the highest katrina levels and
> almost equal to the highest prices seen after rita, hardly a 75%
> decline
The question is, how much of that price inclrease is due to supply and
demand, and how much is simply because competive heating fuels have risen so
much that the price of gas can increase simply because the alternatives are
worse?
Even more to the point: if some portion of the oil increase is due to a
speculative bubble, how much is the natural gas increase reflective of that
bubble?
One might look at the price of anthracite on another front vis a vis oil and
gas to add some perspective: There were huge battles over anthracite prices
a hundred years ago, because sometimes it was $4.00 a ton. Today it's $150 a
ton. The price of oil and natural gas has not seen that kind of inflation.
This is all as good a lesson in supply and demand and the pricing of natural
resources as one can get.
Cheers,
Jim |