Jim Cramer Blog

Oil prices fell Friday on expectations that OPEC will increase output next week and on fading concerns of a supply disruption from a U.S. pipeline fire.
Light, sweet crude for January delivery fell $1.55 to $89.46 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midday in Europe. On Thursday, the crude contract gained 39 cents to settle at $91.01 a barrel in choppy trade.
In London, January Brent crude dropped $1.78 to $88.44 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
Oil prices have tumbled this week amid speculation that supplies are rising and a slowdown in U.S. growth will undercut energy demand.
The fire along the oil conduit from Canada to the Midwest caused a spike above $95 a barrel Thursday - and renewed speculation that oil was as back on its way to $100. But by the end of New York floor trading it was clear most of the network was quickly returned to service and that the fire-damaged section was expected to be back up in days.

Labels: Brent Crude, Oil Prices, OPEC, pipeline fire

The first topic was crude oil. Forecast for 2008 has changed from $73.33/barrel to $78.99. Weekly oil inventory report expected to show decline. Gold hits 28 year high. Dollar reaches record low vs. euro. Financials are weak. Techs and energy are doing well. Citigroup was the next topic. Robert Rubin’s sale of half a million shares back in May, takes investor confidence away from CitiGroup. Next; Steve Leisman of CNBC talks trade with President Bush. The president is trying to motivate business owners to sell free trade to their workers. Next topic was corporate breakups. Dennis Kneale of CNBC recommends Time Warner as a candidate, and that Sony should stay where they are. Stephen Moore of WSJ says private equity increases could be the bi-product of corporations branching off into two or more different companies. OPEC was next, with the questioning of OPEC being responsible for high oil prices. Vincent Devito says OPEC has no incentive to increase oil production. Adam Hewison blames demand, saying that supply is far shorter than the demand from U.S and other questions. Stephen Moore of WSJ says it is the depreciating dollar is the majority to blame for the high oil prices. Many OPEC officials say high oil prices are dude to speculation. The dollar was next. Rick Santelli says that it is for fundamental reasons that it is depreciating. Gisele wanting to get paid in Euros brings this topic into mainstream speculation. Wendy Bounds of WSJ says eco-friendly LEDS can last 50,000 hrs or 10years, compared to 12,000 hrs with a normal bulb. Polybrite will begin selling these LED bulbs for $10-$14 each.

Labels: 3Com Corp., Dollar, Oil, OPEC, The Call

Oil prices were up Monday as the market opened after a U.S. long weekend, but stayed within the range of the last eight weeks because there were no geopolitical or weather factors driving prices.
Light sweet crude for January delivery rose 31 cents to US$59.55 a barrel in midmorning Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Trading was light last week, with floor trading closed for two days due to the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday.
Oil prices have fallen by about 23 percent since hitting an all-time trading high above US$78 a barrel in mid-July. They haven't settled above US$62 a barrel since Oct. 1, despite the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' announcement in mid-October that it would reduce output by 1.2 million barrels a day.
Skepticism that OPEC members are committing to production cuts, as well as milder-than-normal U.S. temperatures this fall, have moderated prices.

Labels: Crude Oil, Oil, OPEC