The United States and 27 of its allies agreed to release 60 million barrels of crude, to counteract the unrest in the Middle East/Northern Africa, namely Libya.
The move was a shocker to the boys and girls on Wall Street, as the price per barrel dropped by almost four percent. It’s hovering right around $92/barrel at present.
After being shafted into paying for gas associated with the $100-plus barrels for several months, this is a welcome change.
Depending on where you’re from, you may have had some of your state and federal representatives polling with questions about summer travel, whether or not you traveled over Memorial Day weekend and if gas prices have weighed heavily on your decisions to get out and go. Yep. This move is all about the economy.
In attempt to avoid a stagnate economic state, which would eventually lead to another recession, it is a present hope that spending less on gas will equate to spending a little bit more on everything else. And hopefully, that everything else will see a drop in costs due to more affordable transport, right?
Around L.A. I have seen more people on bicycles than ever before. Tooling around town, running errands, hitting the grocery store, etc. It’s somewhat refreshing. I’m curious if the paradigm has slightly shifted, or if people will happily jump back in their ride and fill the tank with “cheaper” gas.
The housing market is still a mess. Anyone considering such an investment, and attempted build of equity is going to remain reluctant to so when it costs $80-plus to fill a tank with regular unleaded. In all honesty, the political climate has been forecast with gas prices continuing a rising trend, so to hear about the release of a significant reserve, I’m as shocked as the stock monkeys.
What’s your take? Will lower gas prices encourage you to get out and spend more?
Comments
Dan
June 23rd, 2011 - 2:50:15 PM
The only way it would make a real difference to my spending is if the price at the pump were to drop by a significant amount, like $1/gallon. I spend about $30/week on gas, so a 10 cent drop would mean I'd save a whole dollar a week. I'm not going to change my habits with that. But saving $10/week would make an actual difference and get me going out to lunch and dinner more, for example.
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