I read an article somewhere last year that it was predicted that we had seen a peak in the price of oil and that it would be $70 a barrell by the end of 2013.

The recent falls seem to suggest that this may well be the case, but the US seem to be confident of an upward trend in their economy. So what do all the economists on here think?

Whether this will be reflected at the pumps is another matter, but surely, cheaper oil means the cost of producing is going to fall, bringing prices down for pretty much everything we buy.

Oh, hang on, North Korea want a war!

 

Have you noticed a drop in prices though?
Because I definitely have not.

 

A couple of pence here and there yes. Supermarkets set to make more cuts in the next couple of weeks.

It's more the point of how it effects everything else that we buy from carrots to plasma tv's.

 

It would be crude to say.

 

Once fuel suppliers know people are willing (Read need) to tank up no matter what the price, then new ceilings are set. Once people keep paying £1.40 litre, and the fule suppliers know that riots won't ensue, then if oil prices fall, they know there is no real pressure on them to make all the savings at the pumps.

Drop it by a few pence rather than say 10p, and people will be none the wiser, and still keep filling up. Wait for news of crude price rises, and raise the pump price straight away, or a couiple pence a week for 2-3 weeks, and nothing is really said.

We don't complain enough. If we started blocking refinaries again (and do it properly this time) and the Government would have to lower the duty... eventually.

 

If the oil price drops the government will just go ahead with the duty rise. We will not see a significant drop in price at the pump. The only way that will happen is if we ALL stop buying fuel. We all know that will never happen so nothing will change.
We were paying 85p per litre when the Brent crude price was $10 per barrel and about £1.40 per litre when the Brent crude price was $100 per barrel. $70 per barrel will not make much difference to us. The price of food at the moment is being blamed on wet weather rather than fuel price. It's rip off Britain because we dont stick together like they do in other countrys.

 

I paid £1.18 a litre today, but that was in Spain though.

 

I've noticed an almost 10 pence a litre reduction over the last few weeks, I filled up with diesel this morning at 137.9. The lowest I remember paying for quite a while.

 

Start dancing if it ever gets back to 85p per litre. Bear in mind that was the price when we had the refinery blockade protests lol.

 

Same here 1.38 result!

 

What I never understand is if fuel is so expensive, then why do so many people use more expensive petrol stations?

There is BP near me which is about 1/4 of a mile away from a Shell and Esso. And its always a good few pennies more....yet its rammed with customers

I caught my little cousin filling up her car there and gave her verbal ear bashing for using it...Her response? "Oh, I didn't know!"...She never even looked at the price of the fuel!

I mean I always make a point of looking and buying from the cheapest petrol station in the area. I do the same abroad: I use http://www.prix-carburants.gouv.fr/ when driving through France and shop around in Spain too...I never buy fuel from a motorway services...especially on a toll road. Yet I see countless people who do.

I suppose the same argument can be said for people who use more expensive utilities (gas/leccy etc) instead of switching to cheaper tariff/provider.

 

The banks dictate the price of fuel. They buy up whole fleets of tankers when the price is low and then anchor them at sea until a shortage forces a rise, then sell it and allow the tankers to sail on, and the availability they have now created pushes the price back down ready for the next bulk purchase of tankers. That, and their control of the currency exchange rates gives them total worldwide control of the oil market, more-so than the oil companies themselves and even the worlds governments.

 

I'm not sure they anchor super tankers out to sea,maybe slow them down a bit

With the march to a greener economy with everybody here anyway "suddenly" realising they can't borrow against their "500k" semi and therefore buying the smallest car available. - I can't see us buying lots more any time soon

And now China been told they can't expand expand cos of the smoke. - added to which nobody's got any cash to buy what they have

 

It's happened before, and there's no reason to think it won't happen again, if the right conditions arise:
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/0...85O0V720120625

Been told by who? And even if they did stop expanding, that still leaves India, Brazil, etc, who aren't going to slow up any time soon.

 

Supermarkets have started cutting prices.
I suspect a few more cuts over the next couple of weeks.

 

mm, been dropping since mid feb. it came dangerously close to going to a level of synthetic chems being cheaper, thats the max price it will ever go. Give it 5 years and it wouldn't surprise me if the price will be alot lower than now

 

And it's now below the $100 mark.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business/m...es/default.stm

 

Gold..

 

What about it

 

It's plummeting!

 

Are we heading into some kind of global meltdown with all these prices dropping

 

Feels that way at the moment. All the people that bought commodities when prices were rising, have now realised that demand is decreasing. So from what I can make out, everyone is cutting their losses now and selling what they have.

 

My gold shares gone up 5% ,well they would have done if I wasn't 50% down allready