Tag Archives: banks

Business/Economics, International, Technology, U.S.

Oil & Gas Prices: Iraq increases oil production, North Dakota #3 oil producer, latest increase in oil prices blamed on Iran & Greece

The Iraqi government owned South Oil Company said they are about to increase oil flow from a new floating oil platform in the Persian Gulf.

The new platform is one of four to be built by an Australian company.  Each platform can flow 22,000 barrels per day.  Recently the Iraqi government said their oil production hit three million barrels per day.  This backs up the CEO of Exxon Mobil who said there is plenty of oil in the supply system.

Another proof of plenty of oil in the system; North Dakota has passed up California, as the number three oil producing state in the U.S.

Most of the oil in North Dakota comes from the controversial fracking of shale oil.  In January 2012 North Dakota’s oil production hit 546,500 barrels per day. That’s a 59% increase from January 2011!  By the way, crony capitalist Mitt Romney has hired a CEO, of one of the companies working the oil fields in North Dakota, to be his energy adviser.

Western media blaming recent increase in oil prices on Greek bailout news.  They say prices went up because (once again) a new deal has been reached, on the old deal.  It’s strange ’cause the media sometimes blames an oil price increase on the Greek deals being held up or falling through.

By the way, the Western media hasn’t really explained why the so called Greek debt problem is affecting oil prices.  Greece is not a oil producing country, and they don’t use that much petroleum compared to bigger European countries. In fact, Greece gets a lot of oil from Iran.  Maybe that’s it, they don’t want to play the sanctions game, along with my speculation about their non-compliance with Leviathan.

Western media also blaming reduction of Iranian oil bound for Europe on the price increase.  One Western source even said it was proof the oil sanctions against Iran are working.  One problem with that; Iran says they’ve made up for their cuts (note: “their” cuts, not the sanctions imposed by U.S./Europe) to Europe by increasing sales to other countries.  So who’s really getting hurt by those sanctions?

 

 

Business/Economics, International, Technology, U.S.

Oil & Gas Prices: Exxon Mobil will cut oil production, blames high fuel prices on speculators, blames Republican controlled Congress for too much regulation

Exxon Mobil, the world’s largest corporate producer of oil and natural gas, announced they will cut oil/gas production for 2012 by at least 3%.

This comes as companies like Exxon have said that they have to increase spending of their record setting profits on developing access to new sources of petroleum.

Exxon has already spent tens of billions in the past year, and they’re planning nine projects for 2013, and 12 projects for 2014.

However, it could be that the real reason Exxon Mobil is reducing production is that Iraq is challenging their contracts with the Kurdistan Regional Government.  Iraqi officials say Exxon’s contracts with Iraqi Kurdistan are illegal.  Iraq is taking legal action to kick Exxon out of the huge oil fields in northern Iraq!

Even so, Exxon Mobil’s CEO, Rex Tillerson, said fuel prices are not up because of lack of supply: “On pure supply-demand fundamentals, the markets are well supplied.”

So why are prices going up? Tillerson says “Gasoline prices are up because crude oil is up.”  Really? Duh! But wait, there’s more.  Tillerson also indicated oil prices will continue to go up because of supply issues: “People who are trying to secure those supplies are going to pay what it takes…today with the view that they might not be able to get them later.”

Basically he’s saying that despite plenty of oil already in the supply system, the speculators are driving up prices because they are afraid the oil supply will suddenly stop.

Tillerson explained that it’s not just wars that could stop the oil/gas supply, but over regulation by the Republican controlled U.S. Congress: “Our regulatory process has become so complicated by so many duplicative agencies, by so many mandates from Congress, that now it has become a way to stop things from happening. There are a thousand ways you can be told ‘no’ in this country.”

Oh, and by the way, all those billions of dollars that Exxon Mobil is going to be spending ($185 billion estimated) on those dozen or more projects in the next few years, is expected to increase their production by only 4% to 8% by 2016!!!

 

Fukushima

Global Food Crisis: Increase in number of Fish from Japan testing positive for Radiation Contamination, proof that Fukushima is spewing even more radiation!

“The frequency of radiation detection appears to be rising as two reactors at the Fukushima plant are currently leaking radiation.”-unnamed South Korean official

March 8, 2012, South Korea’s Animal, Plant and Fisheries Quarantine and Inspection Agency says fish from Japan are still contaminated with radiation, almost one year after the March 2011 nuclear disaster.

Korean officials say they’ve detected cesium in 32 recent shipments of fish from Japan.  They say that’s a 50% increase from tests done on 21 prior shipments!

South Korea has been constantly monitoring fish shipments from Japan, ever since the March nuclear disaster at Fukushima Daiichi.  They say radiation levels are still under international “safe” limit guidelines, however, it has increased in the past few months of 2011!

 

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Global Economic War: China to start using Yuan for International Loans, BRICS will dump the U.S. dollar, Hillary Clinton demands China prove its intentions! The end of U.S. dollar dominance begins March 29!

“We will discuss the creation of structures and mechanisms for lending in local currencies in order to maximize economic and financial transactions between the countries that are members of the accord.”-statement from Brazil’s development bank BNDES

The BRICS are about to lead a new Revolution; no more U.S. dollar!  It’s being spearheaded by the Chinese Development Bank.

BRICS members (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) are about to institute a new World Lending system that will not require the use of the U.S. dollar!

Reports say the new system will be signed into operation by BRICS members on March 29, 2012.  It will deal in not only the Chinese Yuan, but in local money as well.  Currently most international lending systems require loans to be made in U.S. dollars.  That’s because the major lenders, the IMF and World Bank, are actually run by the United States.

In response (yet not really explained by the main stream U.S. media why Clinton is making such a statement) U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, is demanding China explain itself: “Given the historic challenges to security and stability posed by rising powers, they do have a special obligation to demonstrate in concrete ways that they are going to pursue a constructive path.”

Clinton’s statement shows just how paranoid the U.S. government is of China.  But, oh well, surveys show many of the citizens of the U.S. are also paranoid of China!  This new international lending agreement with the BRICS will only prove to the paranoids that they are justified in their fear.

 

 

 

Fukushima

Government Incompetence: Japan finally starts decontamination of roads!

Almost a year after the March 11, 2011, Mega Quake that led up to the nuclear disaster at Fukushima Daiichi, the Japanese government has finally started decontamination of roads around the GE designed disaster reactors!

On March 8, workers began spraying down a road around Naraha Town Hall.  Observers say the radiation levels immediately dropped by 80%!

So why did the government wait so long to do it?  IDK, but probably the real reason why they finally started the decontamination was to stop the exodus of people from that area.  Japanese media reports say the government is hoping their late in coming decontamination efforts will convince people to return to their homes!

Last year, out of desperation several local governments tried to decontaminate on their own, but ran into funding and staffing issues.  They appealed to the national government for help.

 

Fukushima

Japan Modern Day Atlantis round 11: More than 10,000 earthquakes hit Japan in the past year! Japan Islands shift Eastward!

Japan’s Meteorological Agency reporting that in the past 12 months, Japan has been hit with 10,119 earthquakes!

70% are considered aftershocks to the March 11, 2011 Mega Quake.  The agency includes quakes that are weak but can still be felt by humans.

Japan’s Geospatial Information Authority reported that the main islands of Japan have shifted eastward. Yamada Town, in northeastern Iwate Prefecture, moved about 76 centimeters (more than 2 & half feet) to the east.

The scientists say massive crust movements are still taking place, and they warn people to be prepared for more big quakes!

JAPAN MODERN DAY ATLANTIS ROUND 10: NEW MEGA QUAKE PREDICTED FOR TOKYO BAY

 

Business/Economics, Technology, U.S.

What Economic Recovery? Mega Rich Oil industry creates piddly amount of new jobs in the United States!

According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), the Oil Industry created few new U.S. jobs in 2011.  Of course that’s not how the main stream media is reporting it.

In 2011 the cash obese oil industry created only 9% of new jobs in the United States! In actual numbers that’s 37,000 jobs.  The WEF claims that those 37,000 oil industry jobs resulted in another 111,000 “indirect” jobs being created.  That’s a drop in the bucket compared to the millions still looking for work!

Now realize that the U.S. oil industry is considered to be “…in the midst of its biggest boom in a generation…”  Wow, and they created only 148,000 direct and indirect jobs in 2011?

Fukushima

Japan Modern Day Atlantis round 10: New Mega Quake predicted for Tokyo Bay

After five years of research, a team of scientist, some from the University of Tokyo, have concluded that Tokyo Bay is set to experience a Mega Quake.

The research caused the geologists to realize the fault line, running under the Kanto area of Japan, is actually 10 km (6 miles) closer to the land’s surface, than first thought.  They have upped the expected earthquake on the fault from a Japanese magnitude 6 to magnitude 7.  Magnitude 7 is the maximum on the Japanese quake intensity scale!

But wait, there’s more!  The research does not include any data for the March 11, 2011, Mega Quake. The researchers say they are now updating their five year study with that data.

JAPAN MODERN DAY ATLANTIS ROUND 9: MARCH 11, 2011 MEGA QUAKE CAUSED 80 SEPERATE EARTHQUAKES WITHIN 15 MINUTES

Fukushima

Japan Modern Day Atlantis round 9: March 11, 2011 mega quake caused 80 seperate earthquakes within 15 minutes

Masatoshi Miyazawa, an associate professor at Kyoto University’s Disaster Prevention Research Institute, says that after almost a year of study, he has concluded the March 11 Mega Quake caused a record number of  ‘induced’ earthquakes.

He says that within 15 minutes of the magnitude 9 earthquake, at least 80 quakes were triggered on different fault lines all over Japan.  From islands north of Hokkaido to islands south of Kyushu.  One quake was 1,300 km (807.8 miles) away from the magnitude 9 Mega Quake.

The magnitudes of the 80 earthquakes ranged from 2 to 4.7.

Miyazawa says many of the induced earthquakes occurred near volcanoes, and he suspects the record number of ‘induced’ quakes was the result of a radical shift in the power balance between tectonic plates.

JAPAN MODERN DAY ATLANTIS ROUND 8: NEW STUDY SAYS FUTURE TSUNAMIS A BIGGER THREAT THAN FIRST THOUGHT

Business/Economics, International, Technology, U.S.

Oil & Gas Prices: EIA says oil supply to drop, Jordan cancels contract with Egypt, North Sea Oil near record high price, Canadian oil prices crashing blame North Dakota

March 6, 2012, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said oil supply will drop.  This is due to disruptions affecting non-OPEC countries.

This is probably the cause of increased fuel prices, but wait, there’s more!  The EIA also says U.S. demand for petroleum is also going down.  In fact, demand in the United States is at a 15 year low!

That decrease in U.S. demand is being offset by increased demand around the World. Also, the EIA says oil transportation problems in the U.S. Midwest will keep oil prices above $103 per barrel, into 2013!

Speaking of oil disruptions, Jordan announced that because of continued attacks on the natural gas line coming from Egypt, they will be forced to look elsewhere for natural gas: “It would be great if Egypt can prove they can secure the pipeline, but it is clear that Jordan can no longer rely on Egyptian gas.”-Qutaiba Abu Qoura, Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources

For oil coming out of the ocean east of United Kingdom, North Sea oil prices spiked on March 6.  The reason is production delays for Asian customers.  It’s called Forties Crude, and hit $1.80 per barrel over the price of Brent Crude (which is about $20.00 per barrel over the price of U.S. Crude).

In September 2011, Forties Crude hit a record $2.05 over the price of Brent Crude.

Reuters estimates that Forties Crude pumping has dropped about 10,000 barrels per day since February 2012.  Reuters analysts think this is due to production problems.  In any case it only helps their price go up!

Canadian oil is dropping in price. According to reports out of Canada, their oil is losing value because there is now too much Canadian oil being pumped into the United States!  In other words too much supply.  So why are fuel prices in the United States going up?

Pipelines coming from Canada are rapidly filling up, and will soon be backed up with too much oil. Another factor in Canadian oil losing value; North Dakota!

Analysts with Cenovus Energy say North Dakota is now pumping out 400,000 extra barrels of oil everyday!

Again why are fuel prices going up then?  The U.S. EIA says all that oil from Canada is getting “bottlenecked” in the U.S. Midwest, because of oil transportation problems.  This is why the Canadians wanted the Keystone XL pipeline.  But, U.S. oil man Barack Obama is blocking the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

Canadians are hoping that getting their oil to more refineries would help bring up revenues: “…clearly not going to be a good quarter. Between blowouts in heavy pricing, blowouts in synthetic oil pricing, weak natural prices, it’s across the board. The only thing that’s working, really, is downstream.”-Andrew Potter, CIBC World Markets

So how much is Canadian oil? Western Canadian Select Crude is currently about $34 less per barrel than U.S. Crude (aka West Texas Intermediate).  Canadians expect their oil prices to continue downward until mid 2013.