|
At roughly $3.00 per gallon of gasoline, $1.77 goes to cover the price of crude oil; $0.40 goes to pay federal and state road taxes, $0.70 goes to refining, distribution and marketing expenses, $0.09 goes to credit card companies; and $0.04 goes back to the gasoline retailer to pay for labor, rent, freight, property taxes, insurance and utilities.
Source: Energy Information Agency and Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Stores of Iowa.
Petroleum Marketers Support Renewable Fuels! Nearly 80% of all gasoline sold in Iowa by our members is blended with ethanol voluntarily. Biodiesel is a growing component of all diesel sold in Iowa. Allowing consumers a choice at the pump enables retailers to offer the most competitively priced fuel.
If you’re upset about the price of motor fuel, blame the fund managers and traders on Wall Street. The NYMEX traders are making millions buying and selling 3.5 times our daily needs of energy each day.
Support our efforts to lower oil prices, log on to www.stopoilspeculators.com to learn how you can encourage Congress to temper the speculative trading that drives prices up.
Marketers dislike high fuel prices even more than consumers do. Why?
S Margins decline.
Retail profit margins on fuel are around 1% and consistently among the lowest in the country (because we have thousands of independent competitors selling fuel).
S Reduced in store sales.
As more discretionary income is consumed on fuel, consumers have less to spend inside stores where the profit potential exists.
S Rising credit card fees.
The higher the price of fuel, the more consumers turn to plastic. Stores are charged 3% and higher on each transaction. Credit card companies make more money on fuel sales than retailers. In 2007, the average cost per convenience store was $43,000 to credit card companies.
S Gouging accusations.
Attorneys Generals across the United States and in Iowa have not found or fined any marketer for gouging. 97% of the price of fuel is determined before it ever arrives in the tanks of your local retailer. Price volatility is a factor of speculative buying and selling of energy shares on the NYMEX by traders who have no intentions of taking delivery of the energy they trade. They are the winners in price volatility and to blame for much of the price changes we experience.
S Gasoline theft increases.
As prices increase, theft increases exponentially. Iowa’s law allows a judge to take away the drivers license of persons convicted of stealing gasoline. It is a dangerous crime that is demanding more of law enforcement’s time and attention. Theft losses get passed along to consumers.
S Debit holds.
Retailers are not to blame for holds. The issuing banks on debit cards and credits are at fault. Some put $50 - $100 holds on customer accounts for up to as much as 72 hours. Put your pin number in to avoid these holds.
S Reason Code 96.
Credit card companies put payment authorization limits on their cards. Visa has a $50 limit while MasterCard has a $75 limit. If the customer goes over this limit, the retailer may not be paid by the credit card company which has forced some retailers to cap the amount of fuel sold per transaction.
S Allocations.
When natural disasters strike or supplies are short, retailers are allocated less fuel and sometimes penalized for pulling too much fuel or too little fuel.
We are Your Neighbors Serving Neighbors.
We encourage you to support Iowa businesses and consider buying a flex fuel vehicle if you’re shopping for a new automobile.
What Can You As A Consumer Do To Lower Fuel Prices?
1. Practice conservation and maintenance of your vehicle. Proper tire inflation and scheduled maintenance can decrease fuel usage.
2. Shop locally rather than driving an hour.
3. Insist Congress investigate the trading on NYMEX and establish rules for taking delivery of energy shares traded to minimize the speculative buys and sells that create price volatility.
4. Insist Congress minimizes the number of boutique fuels required by EPA around the United States as this creates bottlenecks in the manufacturing and distribution of fuels.
5. Insist Congress address the high rates of interchange fees on credit cards which drive up fuel costs.
6. Encourage Congress to offer tax credits to consumers to purchase flex fuel vehicles.
ARTICLES REGARDING THE PRICE OF GASOLINE:
Who Sells Gasoline in the United States?
How do Retailers Get & Sell Gasoline?
Cash or Credit Pricing
|
