queencitybuckeye;1744937 wrote:Some Econ 101 for the OP. Variable cost sets the floor for price. There is NO other relationship.

duh.......I already posted what the 4 variables are.

Spock;1744934 wrote:THE MARKET ONLY SETS PART OF THE PRICE. crude oil prices, taxes and refining costs are all set and the "profit" in the market is the only thing that can be adjusted by most.

Dont you understand? Tell me how the guy that owns a gas station can adjust the taxes on gas? You do realize that state and federal taxes on gas is sometimes as high as 20% of the total cost per gallon?

No shit dude.

Heretic;1744936 wrote:And my last grocery bill should have been, what, 10% of what it actually was? It's weird how, over time, virtually every common good has inflated in price drastically, but the only thing that gets dipshits' panties in a wad is gas. I'd totally love to pay 25 cents for a dozen eggs, like back in the 70s (and a magical reversion back to that price scale would mean a lot more to my wallet than the same happening to gas), but I don't constantly cry over their current price.

The pony ride machine at my local Jewel-Osco has been a penny since i moved here almost 4 years ago.

Inflation proof.

Spock;1744938 wrote:http://www.energytrendsinsider.com/2012/03/21/what-makes-up-the-cost-of-a-gallon-of-gasoline/

Here sleeper, this is kinda like Gas for dummies. It will help you understand what drives the price of gas. I will give you a hint, on those pie charts.....guess what is the largest % of the price?

Once you answer that you will understand that the price at the pump is linear to crude oil prices. When we are paying 2.60 a gallon and crude is $44 a barrel......someone is getting rich as shit.

Good. I hope someone is making as much money as they can for their shareholders. XOM is about $77/share if you want to get rich with them!

SportsAndLady;1744943 wrote:The pony ride machine at my local Jewel-Osco has been a penny since i moved here almost 4 years ago.

Inflation proof.

Lucky man. The pony ride near me used to be a penny now they've raised the price up to a quarter! Fucking ridiculous.

But yeah I'm with sleeper/Auto when it comes to gas no reason to bitch about the price. I don't even care what the price is anymore I fill anytime I'm under a 1/4 of a tank and depending on how much I drive it will last me about 10 days. So even if it changed $.50 cents that would only be about 6 extra bucks.

Spock;1744939 wrote:duh.......I already posted what the 4 variables are.

Duh, doesn't matter. I'll try to say it again in small words so you get it.

If I produce a product that people will pay $100 for, the price for that product will be $100.

If my cost to produce it is $99.99, the price will be $100.

If my cost to produce it is $0.01, the price will be $100.

queencitybuckeye;1744956 wrote:Duh, doesn't matter. I'll try to say it again in small words so you get it.

If I produce a product that people will pay $100 for, the price for that product will be $100.

If my cost to produce it is $99.99, the price will be $100.

If my cost to produce it is $0.01, the price will be $100.

until someone sells it for $99.99 and then you have to adjust your price.

Gas should be free, especially if you're poor

Spock;1744960 wrote:until someone sells it for $99.99 and then you have to adjust your price.

Correct, as Sleeper said earlier. If you can sell gas for less than the stations currently are charging, please do so. We'll save a few bucks and you'll get rich.

The reason behind why people bitch about stuff.

Most people eat shitty food = they bitch about the cost of healthy food
Most people are unhealthy and need medication/constant medical treatment = they bitch about the cost of health insurance
Most people need to drive everywhere = they bitch about the cost of gas (it's even funnier when someone with a fucking gas guzzler bitches about the prices. Drive a Volvo).

I mean, this is still America. Yes, it takes a lot of effort and work to not rely on a vehicle, quick/easy food options and the standard medical system, but it's POSSIBLE. It all depends on priorities.

Azubuike24;1744971 wrote:The reason behind why people bitch about stuff.

Most people eat shitty food = they bitch about the cost of healthy food
Most people are unhealthy and need medication/constant medical treatment = they bitch about the cost of health insurance
Most people need to drive everywhere = they bitch about the cost of gas (it's even funnier when someone with a fucking gas guzzler bitches about the prices. Drive a Volvo).

I mean, this is still America. Yes, it takes a lot of effort and work to not rely on a vehicle, quick/easy food options and the standard medical system, but it's POSSIBLE. It all depends on priorities.

Otherwise known as "The Xbox America".

Azubuike24;1744925 wrote:A soda at the gas station should cost $.08.

It does for the station.

When gas gets down to the cheapest point most stations our only making about one or two pennies per gallon when it goes up they usually jump it so they are making twenty cents a gallon and as it goes down they make less and less and it's just one big cycle. My old neighbor owned a Few stations and that's what he told us. Most of the money they make is from selling candy and drinks not from gas.

It's very similar to selling alcohol and tobacco. It gets people in the door. We've had a few small grocery chains in the family and in a small community, it's a pretty big battle to obtain the right licensing for this stuff. The profit margin is super low, but it gets people in the door and they purchase the candy, soda, grocery items, etc...which turn profits sometimes greater than 2000% on a single item. The soft drink is a perfect example. Literally costs about $.06 cents to produce a 20-ounce fountain drink which can be sold for $1.99.

Azubuike24;1745031 wrote:It's very similar to selling alcohol and tobacco. It gets people in the door. We've had a few small grocery chains in the family and in a small community, it's a pretty big battle to obtain the right licensing for this stuff. The profit margin is super low, but it gets people in the door and they purchase the candy, soda, grocery items, etc...which turn profits sometimes greater than 2000% on a single item. The soft drink is a perfect example. Literally costs about $.06 cents to produce a 20-ounce fountain drink which can be sold for $1.99.

Yeah, buying food, drinks and other grocery-type things at a gas station is pure stupidity, since everything there is a shit-ton more than at an actual store.

just filled up at $2.49 a gallon. absolutely ridiculous and criminal that they can get away with that.

it's almost on par with poaching a lion

I've done it before so I'm not going to do it again, but if you want to predict gas prices you'd have as much luck using a wind sock as you would using the price of WTI. You need to focus on the 3:2:1 crack spread to forecast gas prices. It's sitting really high right now (around $20) but dropped like 5% in the last 3 days.

It still amazes me how a product that we can all choose to purchase causes so much bitching. I mean, damn. Meth is expensive and I don't bitch about it because I choose not to consume it. What's the difference?

no shit. but the only people who really have no gripe against the price of gas are people who drive Teslas. and they're too busy going to the bank to borrow more money to pay for their Teslas to worry about the price of gas.

sportchampps;1744733 wrote:It was 1.97 in Gahanna on Tuesday 2.49 Last night

That was my experience also - I happened to go out on lunch to the Giant Eagle on Stelzer and saw the 2.49 and said "Whaaa...?". Then I noticed Speedway across the street was still $1.97, with cars in line. I jumped in there, waited ten minutes for my turn, then the gas pump display switched to "Pump not available at this time". Ouch. I jetted over to a Speedway on Morse Rd and filled it up for $1.97

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I understand all you econ wizards' explanation of price point and market demand and whatnot, and the fact that everything is relative, and that we're spoiled - and I accept all that.

However, ever since the average price jumped from 1.30 to 3.00 in one year - right around Katrina? - we are certainly more aware of pump prices than any other commodity we use on a daily basis, with GasBuddy.com as our guide, and how now the stations are in absolute lock-step with each other to the penny when there's an increase.

But a 52 cent increase in one day? Over 25%? C'mon, that strains credulity. With the exception of the day of 9-11, I've never ever seen a one-time increase that big. I remember an anomaly week sometime around 2000, when I saw the price go up 50 cents over three days. Gas was 1.59 that week, fairly high at the time, but not unheard of then. There was a 20-cent increase one day to 1.79, and I sat up and took notice, because I'd never seen it that high. Two days later it went up 30 more cents to 2.09. First time I'd seen those increases, and first time I saw the two-dollar barrier cracked in Columbus - and there was absolutely NO news coverage in the paper or TV news that week. I couldn't believe it. No wars breaking out, no shortages, no hurricanes, no threats - nothing.

Azubuike24;1745501 wrote:It still amazes me how a product that we can all choose to purchase causes so much bitching. I mean, damn. Meth is expensive and I don't bitch about it because I choose not to consume it. What's the difference?

People can choose not to use gasoline?

Spock;1745530 wrote:People can choose not to use gasoline?

You absolutely can. Move closer to work, live in the city, buy a bike, take a bus, etc.

Spock;1745530 wrote:People can choose not to use gasoline?

Some can completely, others can do a lot to control how much they use (combining trips, keeping car in good condition) and on how much they spend. When we were remodeling the house in Columbus, any trip to Home Depot included a stop at Giant Eagle for Home Depot gift cards and points for gas. We paid $0 for gasoline for several months.

...Crude was trading today at $43.01 pb and Speedway raised their price in Medina to $ 2.87 per gal.....WTF?

4cards;1745576 wrote:...Crude was trading today at $43.01 pb and Speedway raised their price in Medina to $ 2.87 per gal.....WTF?

I hope it goes to $15/gal.