- My Forums
- Tiger Rant
- LSU Recruiting
- SEC Rant
- Saints Talk
- Pelicans Talk
- More Sports Board
- Fantasy Sports
- Golf Board
- Soccer Board
- O-T Lounge
- Tech Board
- Home/Garden Board
- Outdoor Board
- Health/Fitness Board
- Movie/TV Board
- Book Board
- Music Board
- Political Talk
- Money Talk
- Fark Board
- Gaming Board
- Travel Board
- Food/Drink Board
- Ticket Exchange
- TD Help Board
Customize My Forums- View All Forums
- Show Left Links
- Topic Sort Options
- Trending Topics
- Recent Topics
- Active Topics
Started By
Message
re: Question about gas prices
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:55 pm to LSURussian
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:55 pm to LSURussian
quote:
Once the emergency was declared on March 13, 2020 gas prices started falling steadily until they reached a bottom of $1.77/gallon in April.
It's like you just go out of your way to not read what I actually said
0
Posted on 3/3/26 at 5:01 pm to LSURussian
quote:
Gas prices in the U.S. are based on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) crude prices not "international" prices, aka, Brent crude.
I’m not sure what point you’re trying to prove here. US gas prices aren’t “based on” WTI any more than WTI is “based on” Brent.
US-produced crude still trades internationally, and US refiners still import something like 40% of their crude slate. It’s all related, and there’s very little difference between Brent/WTI trends in the first place. Seems like a meaningless distinction considering he was clearly talking about oil prices in the general sense.
In any case, the phenomenon of gas prices rising faster than they fall is not some figment of folks’ imaginations. It’s a real thing that’s been debated for decades.
I think the most likely answer is retailers’ desire to avoid selling at a loss (on the way up) is simply greater than consumers’ desire to avoid “overpaying” (in the way down). Or to put it another way - none of the retailers are willing to sell for lower than replacement cost, so the price goes up immediately in response to the wholesale market. However, not all consumers are going to go out of their way to find the absolute cheapest gas in their area when the price falls. So the downward pressure during the fall is less than the upward pressure during the spike.
quote:
Gas prices are highly elastic.
What? Gasoline is commonly cited as an example of inelastic demand.
Posted on 3/3/26 at 5:58 pm to lostinbr
quote:Right back at you...
I’m not sure what point you’re trying to prove here.
Posted on 3/3/26 at 6:00 pm to travelgamer
Because Indians just like to screw people
Posted on 3/3/26 at 6:15 pm to LSURussian
quote:
Right back at you...
OK, I’ll try to dumb it down.
- Other guy makes mention of the lag between “international” oil prices falling and gas prices falling.
- You say that gas prices are “based on” WTI, rather than the “international” standard Brent. Presumably to imply US gas prices are not directly affected by international oil pricing? It’s not clear, as I said.
- This doesn’t make sense on multiple levels: A) US refiners import ~40+% of their crude inputs. B) WTI also trades internationally. C) WTI and Brent follow the same pricing peaks and valleys anyway, and are much more closely correlated than gasoline is to either.
- So, as I said, it seems like a pointless distinction when international oil prices are, in fact, the main variable affecting gas prices in the US.
The rest was me addressing the larger point about prices falling slower than they rise.
Page 2 of 2
Popular
Back to top
Follow TigerDroppings for LSU Football News