Happy Halloween everybody. Today’s the day to celebrate sugar as an unappreciated source of energy.
- Oil prices have been trying to move upwards over the past week, buoyed by hopes that Europe’s debt issues may be resolved. There are real tensions and divisions threatening the future of the Euro and the European economy. If Europe’s economy sinks further, world economic confidence will fall with it.
- The graph below shows a longer view of oil prices since 2008. Prices crashed at the start of 2009. While we enjoyed those $2 gas prices, I think none of us want another recession.
Natural gas prices rose somewhat over the last week, as unseasonably cold weather, and snow, crept into the Northeast. Overall, the trend has continued flat to downwards. The graph at the lower left shows how futures prices have dropped since 2009. The red line at the top show that in June 2009 the smart money – the traders on Wall Street – pegged January 2012 natural gas price at $8.00/mmBtu. Today (the bright green line at bottom) it’s $4.06 This gas curve shows how price expectations have dropped due to the combined forces of a bad economy, increased gas production and less speculation in the energy markets.
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