I pass along the following tidbits of business information that caught my eye this morning:
The auto industry just recorded its worst October for U.S. sales in 13 years;
For most of October, the nearby price of a natural gas futures contract closed at a high of $14.34 per million British thermal units. That was more than twice what natural gas traded for at the beginning of the year. However, an Energy Information Agency inventory report last week revealed an unexpectedly large increase in natural-gas storage just as most of the U.S. was experiencing an unusually mild autumn. Accordingly, the price of a nearby natural gas contract closed yesterday at $11.60 per million BTUs, down almost 20% from last week’s highs; and
Clear Thinkers favorite James Hamilton notes that, despite record profits, oil and gas companies are reinvesting a surprisingly low percentage of their profits and he is not sure why.
This is outrageous to think that James Hamilton does NOT know why oil companies are not reinvesting their profits…Come on…Their executives are using the profits to decorate their multi-million dollar homes in River Oaks for the holidays and paying for the extravagant parties they are going to enjoy in 2005…DUH!
It is absolutely amazing what $3 gas prices can buy these days for oil company executives. It is about time those guys enjoyed a well deserved Xmas season. Who knows, they might have two multi-million dollar homes next year when gas prices hit $4/gal. I think this is a great time to interview for a job as a Household Manager if you are well connected with the rich. Alice from the Brady Bunch never had it this good!