That $4.92 in 1991 is $10.21 today.
$4.50 looks good to me. Average price here is $4.72. It’s all relative and at least it’s on the way down. I would like $2.50 gas as it was a couple of years ago, but that’s unrealistic unless there is very little car travel again. I don’t like that trade.
The “Good Old Days” always seem to look better than they really were.
Because inflation is nuts…correct? If so, none of this is a positive thing.
For a 12 ounce coffee, I totally agree.
… and it didn’t happen overnight. If we look at… let’s say… 2017, that $4.92 in 1991 dollars equaled $8.85 in 2017 dollars. Inflation has been a constant factor for most of our lives, but–obviously–it has increased, post pandemic.
In any event, jt sanders’ point was that what looks like an outrageous price for gas today is not so outrageous if we compare it to 1991 gas prices and 1991 income levels.
So income levels have increased at the same rate that fuel costs have risen and equal to the rate of inflation? Is that a fact? Doesn’t seem possible in light of recent rising costs.
We can compare all we want, but normalizing $4.50 a gallon is something I will not do. The bottom line is prices do not need to be this high. The only solution is to get rid of the cause of these high prices. The cause simply comes down to politics and greed. And I don’t see a short term fix for this in our future.
Government mandated price controls on fuel would be a good start. Either that or an "excess profits tax on the oil companies.
Do they get paid money if prices drop and they have losses?
Define excess profits. I’m curious.
Say, anything in excess over your median profits for the last ten years. However the IRS defined it during and shortly after WW2. Look it up.
Is 8 billion in th last quarter excessive? That’s about what Shell earned.
Earnings are not necessarily profits but sure price controls have worked so well in the past. Get those “no gas” signs out again. Econ 101.
Drill more wells! Produce more oil! Get paid less!
Yep grow less food, empty the store shelves, raise prices, make more money, what could go wrong?
This would allow them to reduce fuel taxes during times when the oil prices is high, if they wanted to. Currently France is at nearly $8 per gallon.
Europe has a lot of fuel efficient vehicles with manual transmissions. There is no ethanol in the fuel. People don’t drive as far as they do in the US, as there are more local stores in the villages, and the population is more dense. They don’t have the huge tractor trailer trucks that tear up the roads either.
No, that is profit, not sales revenue.
+1
Yeah, something tells me that the CEOs at Exxon-Mobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, et al have figured out the supply vs demand conundrum sufficiently to NOT want to drastically increase their supply.
Why will it be any different for auto manufacturers once the chip shortage/supply chain/ whatever issues are over? I’m sure they’ll ramp up production, but why would they ramp it up enough to lower sales costs?
Are the Monroney sticker prices on cars as wildly variable or as “volatile” as gasoline prices are?
Yes, many/most dealers are tacking “ADP” stickers onto car windows, but the vehicle mfrs are not getting any of that ADP, and their sticker prices rarely vary w/in a model year.
If it ever gets to the point where car manufacturers post daily updates to their sticker prices, then your theory will be correct. Until then… nope!