Welcome to CostOfOil.Net
Within almost every marketplace, and throughout politics, talk of oil prices carry heavy weight. Everyone is concerned, whether it's the individual parent attempting to support a family, the small business owner concerned about the cost of rising overhead costs, or even the large corporation concerned about the effects that energy costs are having on the bottom line.
According to the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, our thirst for oil has costs that few people stop to think about when they are filling their tanks at the pump. These "hidden costs" include:
- Our federal government continues to subsidize the oil industry.
- The U.S. depends on oil from politically unstable countries and enemies of the U.S.
- Oil dependence forces the transfer of U.S. wealth over to oil-producing countries to the tune of 1.16 trillion over the last 30 years.
- DOE estimates that every $1 billion of trade deficit caused by losing U.S. wealth to oil-producing countries costs 27,000 American jobs. Oil consists of 1/3rd of the deficit.
- The tremendous costs of securing middle-east oil through military deployments, patrols, and military assistance. This amounts to $80 billion internationally. The Iraq war alone has cost $200 billion and continues to climb.
- The need for U.S. presence in the middle east for decades has created anti-Americanism and, in particular, anti-U.S. Islamic fundamentalism.
Additional Reading on "The Hidden Costs"
NDCF Report : Published by the IAGS in their Energy Security section, this National Defense Council foundation report indicates shocking costs related to high oil prices and domestic dependence on imported oil.
U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations : Listen to the audio (RAM format) of this compelling hearing in the Senate on the hidden cost of oil.
International Center For Technology Assessment : This PDF report titled The Real Price of Gasoline provides an analysis of the "external costs" consumers pay for gasoline.
CRS Report for Congress : The National Library for the Environment has redistributed this 1997 report titled Oil Imports: An Overview and Update of Economic and Security Effects.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory : This impressive 2005 report published by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory provides an interesting 2005 Update titled Costs of U.S. Oil Dependence
GlobalSecurity.org : This article, titled Oil/Black Gold/Texas T provides a comprehensive, in-depth analysis of what drives oil prices, along with future projections.
Understanding Crude Oil Prices
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Read more about crude oil futures prices at the WTRG website.
How to Invest in Oil to Make Good Money Off Rising Oil Prices
By Wallace Goldman
The price of oil continues to soar as the demand is obviously way more than the supply. Developing countries like China and India have increased their demand for oil supply to support their massive growth rate. Developed countries like the United States and Japan also increase their demand for oil supply to maintain day to day operating needs. The overall growth in population also have led to the rising need for oil supply.For investors, the rise of oil prices signifies a golden investment opportunity. However, many have ditched the opportunity of making money off the rising oil prices because they do not know how to profit from the oil price hike.
How to Invest in Oil Way #1 Investing in Oil Companies
Oil companies such as Shell and BP Global are generally big and sound in terms of daily operations and management. If the amount of capital that you hold is slightly smaller, small listed oil companies can be worth your investment but only if proper research is being carried out on the management and accounts as such companies operate under a very risky environment.
How to Invest in Oil Way #2 Invest Through Brokerage Account
If you are already investing in stocks through a stock broker, you should be able to invest in the US Oil Fund, which is an asset representing the price of oil. Investors will be able to invest in the fund just like investing in a company. This method allows you to invest in oil and make returns out of the oil price hike easily. However, you must inquire your broker about the fees of such transactions as different brokerage firms might have different rates.
How to Invest in Oil Way #3 Exchange Traded Funds (ETF)
There are some exchange traded funds out there that are related to the price of oil. Some of them are the notable IXC, XLE and VDE. An investment company managing such funds will gather investments from investors to achieve investment goals and objectives that have been set. Compared to mutual funds, exchange traded funds are preferred due to its low cost of ownership and the freedom of trading throughout the day.
How to Invest in Oil #4 Limited Partnerships
There are some oil companies out there that form partnerships with potential investors to either invest in oil exploration activities or to invest in oil companies on a larger scale. Such partnerships can very good for starters as proper research will be carried out before the money is being invested. However, you must only form partnerships with companies or parties who are genuine.
Genuine partners will not hesitate to provide a detailed advice and they will not pressure you with hypes. They will try their best to provide an investment plan in order to help you venture into oil investment.
Feel like wanting to learn more on how to invest in oil?
Wallace Goldman, with the help of Seisma Research is offering an oil investment advice and consultation to those who are interested and want to know how to invest in oil. You will only need to provide Wallace and Seisma Research with your information and investment experience details to get a free detailed advice and report on how to invest in oil.
Cost of Oil News
Learn more about Peak Oil at EnergyAndCapital.com.
| News Stories About the Cost Of Oil
MSNBC - The rising cost of oil threatens a vulnerable economy. |
Toronto News : Rising Cost of Oil Changing Wasteful Spending Habits - Canadians have a slightly different take on rising oil prices. This news article reflects how the oil crunch might be forcing American's to reconsider the "latte factor," and life a lifestyle that's a little more frugal instead.
KSL News Radio : Cost of Oil Forcing Rise in Food Prices - (KSL News) -- "We have already heard that it is going to cost more to heat your home this winter partly because of the summer hurricanes. Now the cost of putting food on your table is going up as well. Kraft Foods Inc, the nation's largest food maker has announced it's raising the price of products like Oscar Meyer lunch meats and Capri Sun juice pouches by an average of 3.9%. Hershey says the cost of it's candy will go up by 1%. Other packaged food makers are expected to follow. Eric Katzman, Deutsche Bank: 'The rising cost of oil is forcing the companies to deal with the higher cost to manufacture, the higher cost to transport, and the higher cost to package...' Experts say you are going to see a four to five percent price increase in your grocery bill starting sometime in January."
World Carbon Footprint
The image above from the Global Footprint Network indicates the regions of the world with the highest carbon footprint. The website performs a side-by-side graphical comparison with a similar map from 1961, and reports that the data clearly shows a significant increase in the world's global carbon footpring. The 1961 map shows a 49% footprint. The 2001 map, 40 years later, shows a carbon footprint of 121%.
The Footprint Network provides visitors with an online tool to calculate your own personal carbon footprint.
Read Carbonomics: How to Fix the Climate and Charge it to OPEC, by Steven Stoft - a free PDF eBook which discusses global warming, and OPEC's part in the global crisis. The Ebook is partially done, but you can read each chapter, for free, as it's written.
| Profit From the Peak, by Brian Hicks, offers a unique perspective about the coming oil crisis and how the global community is facing the final chapter of an oil-based economy. In this book, Brian introduces some ways in which a few people could potentially profit from the crisis - and it isn't the oil companies. |  |
Organizations Focused on the Cost of Oil Crisis
Set America Free : This organization is dedicated to helping America cut its dependence on foreign oil.
The Foundation for Defense of Democracies : This article, The High Cost of Oil Dependence, by Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, describes the tremendous affect oil prices have on terrorism, food prices, and the world economy.
Angry At The Pump : Join this organization, an organized grass-roots effort to get even with the oil companies.
American Energy Independence : This organization is focused on winning back America's Freedom and Independence from the clutches of oil dependence.
This article, Fill 'Er Up: The Hidden Cost of Oil, by Jason Mark, tells the complete story about our country's addiction to oil, which extends far beyond the price at the pump.
Chemically Green : This organization runs a fantastic blog site that covers news and articles based on the costof oil.
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Price of Addiction ### to Foreign Oil |
Alternative Heating Fuels Cost Comparison - Summer '08
By Sam Streubel
I've just finished updating the Fuel Comparison Chart at my alternative heating site, and once again the least expensive fuel to heat with is corn. Although corn reached a high of $7.60 a bushel at the end of June, it has since retreated to $6.31/bushel. This works out to $14.06 per 1 Mil Btu of heat. (The cost to produce 1 Million Btu of heat provides an "apples to apples" method for comparing fuel prices).Compared to heating oil at $4.71/gal, or $33.41 per 1 Mil Btu, corn is almost 60% cheaper. This is good news if you heat your home with corn AND live in the Corn Belt. For the rest of us who live in the northeast or northwest, wood and wood pellets are still the best option.
A cord of seasoned hardwood for the '08 - '09 heating season now costs around $295, or $17.90 per 1 Mil Btu. This is roughly half the cost of fuel oil for an equal amount of heat. If you want to save even more by seasoning your own hardwood, green wood usually sells for $50 less per cord than seasoned.
The price for a ton of wood pellets has also risen about 8% for the upcoming heating season. Last year's $249/ton price is now $269, or $16.81 per Mil Btu. Despite the increase, the cost of heating with wood pellets remains 50% below the cost of oil.
So far this week, the price of crude has dropped by $15 a barrel and could possibly drop further. This doesn't necessarily indicate a future drop in the cost of wood or wood pellets. Although the price of oil directly affects the overall cost of wood and wood pellets, the dealers in these alternative fuels generally quote a price for the season to accommodate advance orders.
Improve your home with timely energy saving information from Alternative-Heating-Info.com
Visit Amazon.com where there are almost 7,000 books on the "cost of oil" - including The Coming Economic Collapse: How you Can Thrive When Oil Costs $200 a Barrel by Stephen Leeb and Glen Strathy, and The Oil Regions of Pennsylvania by William Wright.