Gas price gouging - when are the oil companies going to be held accountable?

[Boo Boo]

I am guessing everyone has seen the sharp increase in prices over the last few years and it gets higher every year. but how can they charge so much and rake in the billions of profits while saying its the oil coming in.

they keep talking about reform but it seems that they only want to line their pockets with the profits the oil companies give back to them. I sure wish someone would get a pair of balls and do something.

profits of 12 billion a year are BS

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I am sure that you can locate a McOwen thread on a similar subject with almost the same title.

Please use it. We do not want to confuse you and Dave

Anandtech Moderator

 

[Specop 007]

*cry*

Come on man, if you dont like it DONT USE IT.

Wanna hold Toyota accountable for raking in billions? How about Intel? Hell, Walmart makes a killing, lets do something to them too.

Or, heres a better idea. Take some basic Econ and business classes and maybe use your brain a bit to see how the world works. Yeah....theres a thought....

 

[dahunan]

Originally posted by: Specop 007
*cry*

Come on man, if you dont like it DONT USE IT.

Wanna hold Toyota accountable for raking in billions? How about Intel? Hell, Walmart makes a killing, lets do something to them too.

Or, heres a better idea. Take some basic Econ and business classes and maybe use your brain a bit to see how the world works. Yeah....theres a thought....

Do you realize how many of your fallen brothers DIED for their profits?

 

[Specop 007]

Originally posted by: dahunan

Originally posted by: Specop 007
*cry*

Come on man, if you dont like it DONT USE IT.

Wanna hold Toyota accountable for raking in billions? How about Intel? Hell, Walmart makes a killing, lets do something to them too.

Or, heres a better idea. Take some basic Econ and business classes and maybe use your brain a bit to see how the world works. Yeah....theres a thought....

Do you realize how many of your fallen brothers DIED for their profits?

Please post the numbers.
As i recall, the oil flowing from Iraq is minimal. In fact, maybe YOU should look at where America gets its oil.

Oh, you didnt happen to ever buy a girl a diamond did you? You know, just curious.....

 

[blackangst1]

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
I am guessing everyone has seen the sharp increase in prices over the last few years and it gets higher every year. but how can they charge so much and rake in the billions of profits while saying its the oil coming in.

they keep talking about reform but it seems that they only want to line their pockets with the profits the oil companies give back to them. I sure wish someone would get a pair of balls and do something.

profits of 12 billion a year are BS

Dave? Is this you?
BTW who has EVER talked about "reform"? What exactly needs reforming?

Oh and profits? How's this grab ya: (2006) (source: Fortune500)

WalMart (largest company on the planet): 11.2 bill
General Electric 16.4 bill
Citigroup: 24.6 bill
AIG: 10.3 bill
Bank of America: 16.5 bill
Microsoft: 12.3 bill


You wanna start a witchunt for them too? WTF are you bitching about?

 

[dahunan]

Originally posted by: Specop 007

Originally posted by: dahunan

Originally posted by: Specop 007
*cry*

Come on man, if you dont like it DONT USE IT.

Wanna hold Toyota accountable for raking in billions? How about Intel? Hell, Walmart makes a killing, lets do something to them too.

Or, heres a better idea. Take some basic Econ and business classes and maybe use your brain a bit to see how the world works. Yeah....theres a thought....

Do you realize how many of your fallen brothers DIED for their profits?

Please post the numbers.
As i recall, the oil flowing from Iraq is minimal. In fact, maybe YOU should look at where America gets its oil.

Oh, you didnt happen to ever buy a girl a diamond did you? You know, just curious.....

You could also look into why we helped Britain overthrow the democratically elected president in Iran in the 50's ... and what good did that do us all?

Google: "Operation Ajax"

 

[herbiehancock]

Originally posted by: blackangst1

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
I am guessing everyone has seen the sharp increase in prices over the last few years and it gets higher every year. but how can they charge so much and rake in the billions of profits while saying its the oil coming in.

they keep talking about reform but it seems that they only want to line their pockets with the profits the oil companies give back to them. I sure wish someone would get a pair of balls and do something.

profits of 12 billion a year are BS

Dave? Is this you?
BTW who has EVER talked about "reform"? What exactly needs reforming?

Oh and profits? How's this grab ya: (2006) (source: Fortune500)

WalMart (largest company on the planet): 11.2 bill
General Electric 16.4 bill
Citigroup: 24.6 bill
AIG: 10.3 bill
Bank of America: 16.5 bill
Microsoft: 12.3 bill


You wanna start a witchunt for them too? WTF are you bitching about?

I hate it when people purposefully distort information.........esp. when it's so easily checked. You conveniently left out that Exxon-Mobil is listed in the 2006 Fortune 500 list, either the American list or the Global list, as the #1 largest corporation on the planet........not Wal-Mart (#2 on both).



I think you are confusing profits and how they are being posted.........while it's true you posted the YEARLY profits for those companies mentioned above, in 2005....Exxon-Mobil was reporting QUARTLY profits about equal to WalMart's YEARLY profits.....

So, if you are really going to report profits for companies.....please compare yearly to yearly, not quarterly to yearly.....as you seem to be doing.

And actually, you misquoted the Fortune 500 list.............the largest company on the planet, according to profits, is Exxon-Mobil with yearly profits in 2006 of $36.1 billion......which is head and shoulders above Wal-Mart at #2, with profits of $11.2 billion.

So, it seems that Exxon-Mobil had, after taxes, $25 Billion MORE in profits than your beloved Wal-Mart.


Guess you can go here to see for yourself.....Fortune 500 list of 2006 annual ranking of America's largest corporations.....at least I put up a link to my figures.....


And of course, this comes off the AMERICAN Top 500 Fortune 500 list.......which does not include GLOBAL companies.

Here's a link to the Fortune 500 list of the World's largest corporations...........


Now, it's true that Wal-Mart still lists as the second largest corp. in the world, behind Exxon-Mobil........but WM's profits are nowhere near ANY of the top five oil company profits (and the last two are almost bit players in the oil biz).....which are:


Exxon-Mobil.........$36 Billion

Shell............$25 Billion

BP..........$22 Billion

Chevron...........$14 Billion

ConocoPhillips.......$13 Billion



The only non-oil company to show anywhere near those profits was Citigroup at $25 Billion for 2006......which puts them into very heady company. But that's the only company to get into that top three.....Conoco and Chevron are small players in the oil company arena.

The top three oil companies had higher profits than everyone on the Fortune 500 Global list except for the aforementioned Citigroup......they had higher profits than Toyota ($12 B), GE ($16B), Total ($15B), SHBC Holdings ($15B), BOA ($16B).

So, please compare apples to apples.

And I'll do the FAIR comparisons for you...........



Exxon-Mobil...........Revenues were $339B, profits $36B (Almost 11% profit margin)

Wal-Mart...............Revenues were $315B, profits $11.2B (Just over 3.5% profit margin)

Shell.....................Revenues $306B, profits $25.3B (Almost 9% profit margin)

BP........................Revenues $267.6B, profits $22.3B (Almost 9% profit margin)


Now, how did Exxon-Mobil have so large a profit margin on its revenues compared to Wal-Mart's, or how did Royal Dutch Shell have HIGHER profits than Wal-Mart despite lower overall revenues for 2006? ($9B lower revenues, $14B higher profits.)


So, to paraphrase what you said:

Oh, and profits? How's that grab ya??

 

[imported_Shivetya]

Originally posted by: Boo Boo
I am guessing everyone has seen the sharp increase in prices over the last few years and it gets higher every year. but how can they charge so much and rake in the billions of profits while saying its the oil coming in.

they keep talking about reform but it seems that they only want to line their pockets with the profits the oil companies give back to them. I sure wish someone would get a pair of balls and do something.

profits of 12 billion a year are BS

When you understand economics, the difference between profit and profit margin, and also when you learn who produces and sells the gasoline you buy, then come back. In other words, when you present an intelligent discussion on the subject, as in know what in the hell you are talking about instead of being a mindless drone parrot, come back and have fun.

Well at least the Republican and Democratic parties can rely on people like you to vote for one of them, ignorance is their power base.

 

[imported_Shivetya]

I say the more profit the better.


So, lets just take all that money from the gas companies. Know what happens? suddenly firemen, policemen, teachers, and friends, will find their retirement 401Ks drop in value. Many senior citizens relying on their dividends and stocks will be screwed.

and for what? So the politicians can take the money and buy votes further marginalizing your already next to nothing influence on them? The government makes nearly 5 times the profit off of gasoline than any oil company... and they don't do any work for it!

What a bunch of class warfare losers we have here, who cannot think beyond their petty needs. Look, if you cannot afford to drive then DON'T. Move closer, get a more economical means of transportation, but quit crying "its not fair" and grow the hell up


PS: How much did Exxon collect in TAXES from consumers for the Federal Government? Do you know?