Exxon's record $11.6 B 3 months

[Snakes Gould]

i dont really know why anyone can be mad at this. this is a business and if you ran the business you'd want the highest profits possible. sure it sucks for us, but if it was me, i wouldnt want anyone telling me i made too much money.

[thedude]

yeah I know all about supply and demand. Isn't demand DOWN in the US ? So prices should fall (as they are starting to fall the past few weeks). But if the big oil companies COSTS are high (record oil prices, higher costs to produce the gasoline), shouldn't their profit margin remain the same and not increase to a record high?

This is what I don't get... if the cost of crude oil is also going up, then why are Exxon's (and Shell's) profits also at all time high. Should they barely be breaking even if they are NOT artificially inflating gasoline prices?!

Here is your answer.

Demand for Oil is inelastic in the US, so it really doesn't change that much in the short-run. Demand world wide is continuing to increase (especially in China). Since the Oil market is a monopoly, Exxon can decrease the supply and increase the price.

[StlSluggers]

The oil market is not a monopoly. There is no one company that controls everything.

[Neato Torpedo]

God I can't wait till hydrogen fuel cells, nuclear power, and electric cars take hold. But of course, the oil lobby will try to delay that until we have six months of oil left in the world and gas costs $25 a gallon.

[StlSluggers]

Hydrogen has major storage issues. It's so light that a lot of it is lost just in the process of getting it from point A to point B, and that's before you put it in your car and start losing more of it.

Electric is probably the next best bet, but that will put an even bigger crimp on home heating costs, since it would come from the same infrastructure. Then all the complainers will shift from "Big Oil" to "Big Electric."

[Phatferd]

We need to focus all of our attention on teleporting.

[bleach168]

Yeah and guess who pays for their profits. F

the "their" you mention is thousands upon thousands of people around the world and likely includes family, friends, and maybe even yourself. They are called "shareholders".

Nearly 90% of all shares of stock in the United States are held by the wealthiest 10% of households. Clearly, some people are benefitting a whole lot more than others.

[RugbyD]

Yeah and guess who pays for their profits. F

the "their" you mention is thousands upon thousands of people around the world and likely includes family, friends, and maybe even yourself. They are called "shareholders".

Nearly 90% of all shares of stock in the United States are held by the wealthiest 10% of households. Clearly, some people are benefitting a whole lot more than others.

Yes, it is a known fact that rich people have more assets than poor people, but I'm not sure what that has to do with anything.

Rich people also own tons of financial stocks, but I don't hear you crying for them.

[Phatferd]

Unless you're Countrywide and the government is giving you some security for your losses.

[bleach168]

Rich people also own tons of financial stocks, but I don't hear you crying for them.

Yeah, I'm crying for rich people who own financial stocks. I mean, how dare those poor people losing their homes to foreclosure. Don't they realize how much they are hurting rich people?