Crude Oil Prices And World Stability

The market price of crude oil has fallen 50% in a year. The last time we saw a similar drop, it was a major contributing factor in the collapse of the Soviet Union. We could see something of a similar magnitude this year. So many countries depend on high oil prices.

 

So many corporations depend on high gasoline prices...



Cheap crude and same old price at the pump make them billions in profits.

 

You saw what happened to the stock market.

 

The "adjustment"

 

They call it a "correction". That's code for "the fat cats stealing the wealth", like they did in 2008. And the 401's get left holding the empty bag. The stock market has lost $3 TRILLION in wealth in the month of August.

Big oil makes $100 billion in profits every three months. Oil prices are down 66% from $140.00 a barrel, down to $38.00 a barrel. Gas prices are only down a little over 25% from $4.00 a gallon to $2.65 a gallon here in W.V.. It's down almost to $2.00 a gallon in other parts of the country. But even at $2.00 a gallon, that gives big oil 15-20% more profits.

The price of gas effects the cost of everything, because of shipping costs.

 

Who made money from the crash?

 

The banks and stock brokers and corporations. On top of getting out early, because of insider info, they also got a trillion dollar bailout from the federal government......called it "too big to fail". So the American people got fucked twice.

 

This is not like 2008. This is a world-wide crash caused by the slowing Chinese economy and excessive supplies of crude oil.

The crash of 2008 was publicly predicted by several analysts, based on the housing bubble and lax mortgage regulation. They just didn't know the exact time the shit would hit the fan.

 

The 2008 crash was global. That's why Greece, Spain, and Portugal are still bankrupt. Everything is connected in the global economy.
Today's crash is about China's devaluation of their currency, not oil.

 

2008 started here and spread. This crash started in Asia and came here. Oil was a contributing factor. Oil company profits are dropping fast, and will soon be dropping faster. China's slowing economy will reduce crude oil demand as supplies increase. Traders are factoring this in, ahead of time.

If anybody traded stocks in advance on inside info this time, it was Saudi Arabia who was in the best position to do it.

 

The 'fat cats' definitely haven't profited from this crash yet:

http://fortune.com/2015/08/25/billionaires-lost-1-billion/

But of course it won't matter, because as long as they don't panic sell (which they won't, because they don't need the money), they will do alright in the long run.

The only way to profit from a crash is to ask the government to bail you out, or to buy stocks when they're cheap... I've met people who actually think it's smart to sell as soon as the market goes down so they won't lose any more money. THIS is how 'fat cats' make money-- from people who don't know what they're doing or don't have enough savings or sell when they get scared. They will sell out of fear and drive the prices down so people who DO know what they're doing can swoop in and buy them up cheap.

If this is a crash, then it's probably going to be a great buying opportunity for anyone who isn't in debt or unemployed, or whose job isn't at risk.

 

The fat cats pretty much own the stock market. Only fat cats are eligible to invest in the S&P 500, the average investor is not. If you watch, the DOW will always be up or down a multiple of ten to the S&P. So if the DOW is up 500, the S&P will be up 50. Every once in a while, the DOW will be up say, 130 and the S&P will only be up 10.. That's when there is average investor activity. it's very rare to see the DOW up and the S&P down, or visa versa. The S&P is even connected to the NASDAC. Sometimes the DOW will be down 100 and the NASDAC will be down 50, and the S&P will be down 15. But the NASDAC is mostly tech stocks, and a freer market because the fat cats haven't got their hooks in to that market as much. The S&P is owned by corporate business.

 

You're right on target. Anybody can buy low and sell high, and any other strategy is crazy.

Where did you get this idea? My 401k includes an S&P500 fund. I'm not anybody special.

 

But you can't invest in the S&P, your employer does it for you.

 

Well, yes and no. Quite a few investment companies offer those mutual funds for sale to anybody who can invest whatever minimum amount they set for starting a new account. In most cases, the minimum is only a few thousand dollars. If you don't have at least that much to invest, stocks and mutual funds aren't worth the bother anyway. Also, you can pick out just a few favorite companies out of the S&P500 list and buy shares of only those companies. The list is online.

I'm not saying that anybody should rush into buying stocks, only that it's still an option for ordinary people, and it isn't uncommon.

 

The Dow went up 500 points in the last hour of trading today.

The headlines are saying that the 'crash' is mostly just the market adjusting to the new valuation of the Yuan, and the markets will stabilize in a week or so.

This is why I refuse to buy into all of the doom and gloom.

 

It's a much better option now that the interest rates are too low for normal savings accounts to beat inflation. The low interest rates on savings accounts are also why normal people won't be in a rush to take all of their money out of the markets.

The problem is finding brokers who aren't more about themselves than their clients.

 

Market swings are mostly for news networks to amuse themselves during the day. Over the long term, the average price of a typical stock is not going to stray very far from a company's true value, in terms of its ability to earn a profit from selling goods and/or services.

The crude oil price collapse is likely to have larger and longer lasting consequences. I don't see anything on the horizon that's likely to change the situation.

 

It's a big advantage to have a 4-year degree in business and be able to analyze companies for yourself. Of course, people with only a high school diploma have educated themselves in the past and done well in the market, but it isn't easy.

 

If the markets are as rigged as you think they are you should be able to turn a profit just like the fat cats.
You won't be able to make billions, but you should do alright.