In Congress, A New Push for Laws On Oil Speculation

In Congress, A New Push for Laws On Oil Speculation

www.downstre amtoday.com

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., said Tuesday that Senate Democrats are working on a new energy package that would deal just with the issue of market speculation, which lawmakers suspect of helping drive up oil prices. In a sign the package may have bipartisan appeal, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, said Republicans might be open to such a plan, although they hope to pair it up with increased domestic drilling.

"There is something wrong with the cost of a barrel of oil, even with all of the fees and the taxes," Hutchison told reporters. "There's got to be a speculation-in-the-futures-market part of that that we ought to be able to do something about."

(visit the link for the full news article)

This has GOT to be the slowest moving/acting Congress we have ever had!

"There is something wrong with the cost of a barrel of oil", well, no kidding! It's all over the news media and I think everybody knows by now that speculators are who's causing what's "wrong with the cost of a barrel of oil"!

Congress LET this speculating in oil start with the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000, and then the Senate conducted an investigation into the rising cost of oil and gas in June 2006 by the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, the report was called the "The Role of Market Speculation in rising oil and gas prices".

In that report, back in 2006, the Senate Subcommittee reported how speculation was the driving force pushing gas and oil prices higher, and yet they DID NOTHING!

In the Senate Report, they even gave recommendations to stop the speculation of oil!

From the "Role of Market Speculation .... " link above.

Recommendations

1. Eliminate Enron Loophole. Congress should eliminate the
Enron loophole that currently limits CFTC oversight of key U.S.
energy commodity markets and put the CFTC back on the beat policing
these markets.

2. Require Large Trader Reports. Congress should enact legislation
to provide that persons trading energy futures ''look-alike''
contracts on over-the-counter electronic exchanges are subject to
the CFTC's large trader reporting requirements.

3. Monitor U.S. Energy Trades on Foreign Exchanges. Congress
should enact legislation to ensure that U.S. persons trading
U.S. energy commodities on foreign exchanges are subject to the
CFTC's large trader reporting requirements.

There are two more recomendations, but I didn't want too large a quote.

Did you read THE FIRST recommendation the committee had to stop the oil speculation! And this was TWO YEARS AGO!!!

They could easily end the speculation going on in the oil commodity market, all they would have to do is amend the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000 and re-regulate the commodities electronic exchanges!

Let's see if they are smart enough to figure their own report out and put an end to the oil speculation!

www.downstre amtoday.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 6/12/2008 by Keyhole]

reply to post by Keyhole


Starred & flagged! This is well past due and it is ridiculous that with so many industry experts having stated that speculators are, at the very least, having a negative effect on the prices. I'll be surprised if anything comes from it, though... pleasantly surprised.

Originally posted by Keyhole

In that report, back in 2006, the Senate Subcommittee reported how speculation was the driving force pushing gas and oil prices higher, and yet they DID NOTHING!
[edit on 6/12/2008 by Keyhole]

The sad part is, I believe they will continue to do nothing. What is happening in America, who is very DEPENDANT on affordable oil, was planned. I think it was planned to cripple the economy completely, and further weed-out the middle class. Demand for oil is going down, down, down, as more people ride their bike to work. As well as cutting out any 'trips' that are not necessary. I see bikes all over the place here now. It's insane!!!!

Well, I think that everything(economy, American dollar) could possibly crash sometime soon anyway. So what I see is a free-for-all moneygrab.
I mean, the prices of foods going way up, and the thing with people getting rich as hell with their oil stocks while every middle/lower class family suffers to make it possible.

Can anyone explain the mechanism of letting this 2006 report go nowhere and then RESTARTING the process all over now?

Our politicians and their lobbyist amigos have absolutely NO SHAME.

It is most certainly a result of election year.

Most here are right nothing will ever get done. Its just a dog and pony show just like everything else. Like someone else said I think we need to make people take delivery of this stuff. I think that would change the way people invest

Congress has no Constitutional power to dictate what investors may or may not invest in. Speculation in the commodities market has taken place for a very long time, and yet only now Congress sees fit to try and pass another unconstitutional law?

Cmon now folks, this is nothing more than political pandering.

I just think it can be called nothing but negligent on the part of Congress to not have acted on their own investigations recommendations in 2006 into the rising price of oil and gas!

Levin-Coleman Report Finds Speculation Adding To Oil Prices: Put the Cop Back on the Beat

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 27, 2006

The report recommends that the CFTC’s large trader reporting system be extended to require all U.S. traders of energy futures to report large trades to the CFTC, regardless of where the trade takes place – on the NYMEX, on an over-the-counter electronic exchange, or on a foreign exchange.

*****SKIP*****

“We need to explore legislative ideas to ensure that energy prices reflect the true market forces of supply and demand and guard against speculators driving up prices,” Coleman said. “It is becoming increasingly clear that our efforts must be proactive, as the energy futures market is really about whether families will be able to afford to heat their homes and fill up at the pump. As more and more trading occurs on electronic markets without oversight, it’s time to determine whether the scale needs to be tipped from the speculator to the regulator.”

These are the recommendations made in 2006 that Congress has IGNORED that would have prevented oil prices from being manipulated TWO YEARS AGO !

B. Recommendations

1. Eliminate Enron Loophole. Congress should eliminate the Enron loophole that currently limits CFTC oversight of key U.S. energy commodity markets, and put the CFTC back on the beat policing these markets.

2. Require Large Trader Reports. Congress should enact legislation to provide that persons trading energy futures “look-alike” contracts on over-the-counter electronic exchanges are subject to the CFTC’s large trader reporting requirements.

3. Monitor U.S. Energy Trades on Foreign Exchanges. Congress should enact legislation to ensure that U.S. persons trading U.S. energy commodities on foreign exchanges are subject to the CFTC’s large trader reporting requirements.

4. Increase U.S.-U.K. Cooperation. The CFTC should work with the United Kingdom Financial Services Authority to ensure it has information about all large trades in U.S. energy commodities on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

5. Make ICE Determination. The CFTC should immediately conduct the hearing required by its regulations to examine the price discovery function of the ICE OTC electronic exchange and the need for ICE to publish daily trading data as required by the Commodity Exchange Act.

Here the information is that they need to fix this rising oil price problem, it's been at their finger tips for TWO YEARS now!

And yet they keep blabbering about trying to figure out how to get the oil prices back down, new refineries, open ANWAR, well there's plenty of supply to meet the worlds needs, that's not the problem. If you do these two things, and leave the "Enron Loophole", you would just have these speculators manipulating the price of that oil too!

reply to post by slackerwire


Maybe not "dictate", but they do regulate!

Energy Futures Commodities have always been regulated until Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000, that's when Enron pushed and got Congress to allow electronic exchanges to become unregulated, and this was the beginning of the rise in the price of oil!

Here's some information on all this, it's very informative,

Perhaps 60% of Today’s Oil Price is Pure Speculation






[edit on 6/12/2008 by Keyhole]

reply to post by Keyhole


Thats very true, and therein lies the problem. The morons in DC will never realize that more government intervention is never the answer.

reply to post by slackerwire


I'm afraid that in THIS case it is the answer.

There are A LOT of greedy people in the oil market, and they will just keep driving the cost of oil up until it starts doing substantial economic damage to countries aroung the globe.

The only reason the government regulates certain commodities is too ensure that people can afford that commodity and too make sure that big business doesn't overcharge for that commodity.

People need electricity, so the government regulates the price that can be charged so people can afford it, people need insurance so the government regulates the industry so people can afford it.

People NEED fuel/gas/oil, I just can't understand HOW they decided that it would be okay to allow oil to be unregulated!

Do you think if the electric power companies or insurance industry wasn't regulated that they would charge less?

No, they would charge as much as they possibly could, knowing people NEED what they are offering. The government regulates commodities and industries to prevent them from overcharging their citizens for services and commodities that the government deems a necessity.

I understand what you're saying, but I think you are overlooking one simple factor: The free market.

Competition would immediately pop up and earn the business of those NEEDING lower prices in order to have that product.

Example: Lets say Energy Company A wanted to charge $1,000 per kilowatt hour for electricity. Obviously very few people would be able to afford that. Granted, Energy Company A would be swimming in cash, as it only costs them lets say .05 cents to actually produce that kilowatt hour.

So, Company A = obscene profits but lots of people sitting around in dark, hot houses.

Now, Company B comes along and is willing to do business on the basis of quantity, not quality.

They offer that same kilowatt hour for $25 and in return, they get a huge volume of those same sweaty people who were previously sitting around in a dark house.

The only job of the government should be to prevent monopolies. Nothing more, nothing less.

It certainly doesn't help the cause when Big Oil routinely donates large sums of money to politicians on both sides of the aisle, so that they may curry favor with whoever happens to be in power at the time.

All lobbying should be made illegal, and I can virtually guarantee we would see alternative energy made affordable within a very short period of time if something like that were to ever happen.

Lets be honest here, people certainly don't NEED oil. It is basically a luxury. Almost a necessity given todays situation with everything being spread out over large areas, but oil isn't necessary to life.

[edit on 12-6-2008 by slackerwire]

Something interesting I read somewhere, too bad I forgot to make a link.

It seems that the money speculators are using to drive the oil prices up comes from wealthy rich oil Arabs investors that are pushing the prices to make more wealth.

Well I believe it, because this a lot of money going around to be able to buy, buy and buy into speculations.

And all comes from our own backyard in the USA, should we treat this people as traitors?.

Interesting.

reply to post by marg6043


The only people who should be treated as traitors are those in congress who make it impossible for us to drill domestically. They are the ones truly harming our nation.

But you see, why should congress want to allow more drilling in American, when they are up to their necks in the butts of those that are reaping the wealth.

We have a government that is run by oil men and corporate America.

They are all doing very well when it comes to personal wealth.

This is a very interesting and informative article:

McCain Defends 'Enron Loophole'

May 19, 2008—Sen. John McCain says he opposes the $307 billion farm bill because it would dole out wasteful subsidies, but his chief economic adviser Phil Gramm also wants to stop its proposed regulation of energy futures trading, a market that was famously abused when Enron Corp. manipulated California’s electricity prices in 2001.

This article describes how Enron manipulated the price of electricty in California through this "Enron Loophole", and goes on to explain how other energy commodities began be manipulated by speculators through this loophole.

It's a very good informative article that's worth the read!

[edit on 6/12/2008 by Keyhole]

Originally posted by marg6043
But you see, why should congress want to allow more drilling in American, when they are up to their necks in the butts of those that are reaping the wealth.

We have a government that is run by oil men and corporate America.

They are all doing very well when it comes to personal wealth.

Precisely why each and every one of them should be tried for treason

Originally posted by Keyhole
This is a very interesting and informative article:

McCain Defends 'Enron Loophole'

May 19, 2008—Sen. John McCain says he opposes the $307 billion farm bill because it would dole out wasteful subsidies, but his chief economic adviser Phil Gramm also wants to stop its proposed regulation of energy futures trading, a market that was famously abused when Enron Corp. manipulated California’s electricity prices in 2001.

This article describes how Enron manipulated the price of electricty in California through this "Enron Loophole", and goes on to explain how other energy commodities began be manipulated by speculators through this loophole.

It's a very good informative article that's worth the read!

[edit on 6/12/2008 by Keyhole]

Keyhole having some passion on this one Yeah we need to make people take delivery of all this oil if they want to bid it up...the suckers. They are part of the problem no doubt but it derives from speculators hedging their bets against the weak dollar. If we adopt some sort of strong dollar strategy like hey quit spending so much money you will see people dive out of there faster than you can say.....well......something

Citizens, start your email!
All you gotta do is google your congressperson (if you don't know who) to find their website with their email contact, copy the recommendations Keyhole presents, paste after the words Dear Representative/Senator and end with Thank You.

No, this won't solve everything but it's a step (actually a sizable one), and you wouldn't be walking now, if you hadn't taken that first step.