Brace For A Big Jump At The Pump, Experts Say

[Wewild]

Sure glad that Colonial pipe line keeps the price down $.20 a gallon.

See link

http://www.colpipe.com/ab_map.asp

Makes me wonder what the trade off is?????

 

[eric]

Just think what custom baling is going to cost this year.

I went to a Tx CoOp Extension meeting last night on pasture improvement, and the fellow speaking there said more and more farmers are going the route of no-till seeding because of the price of diesel. Getting hard to justify going over and over a large plot when you can get 75-80% of the same results with no-till.

Cost of sprigging is going up considerably this spring also.

 

[Craig-TX]

Eric, I read where some "expert" was claiming that steel prices may soften later this year. What's your take on that?

Craig-TX

 

[eric]

Eric, I read where some "expert" was claiming that steel prices may soften later this year. What's your take on that?

Craig-TX

I sure haven't heard that! I just got a load from Jorgensen Steel, mostly cold rolled shafting, and I paid .84 a pound on 2000 pd order. This same stuff was .46.-48 a pound last summer. We dont use much structual steel (angle iron/pipe/channel), but I did see in the latest flyer I received that the same pipe I used on my fence has gone up from .89 a ft to 1.35 a ft., thats gotta be killing the fence builders. They also went up from $9600 on a 30 x 40 ft building, installed to $10,800 for the same building.

I just cant see prices coming down anytime soon, especially since most of what we get is imported from overseas, and the transportation costs are just going up and up everyday. What is milled here in the states is subject to the skyrocketing gas prices to run the furnaces, so we get whacked either way. We dont honor any quotes more than 30 days old now, as that's as long as our suppliers will lock in a current price.

I hope you're right as I have put off several projects for the cows, waiting for the prices to get a little more reasonable.

 

[Craig-TX]

Thanks for the opinion. Everything you're saying makes sense to me. This guy was claiming that Chinese demand was starting to slack off due to their boom having seen its heyday. First time I'd heard anything like that, just wanted to make sure I hadn't been missing something. My gut instinct would be to agree with you 100%. Transportation costs alone, due to fuel prices, will not be going down. And the inflation beast is not even close to being tamed.

Craig-TX

 

[Ryder]

Thanks for the opinion. Everything you're saying makes sense to me. This guy was claiming that Chinese demand was starting to slack off due to their boom having seen its heyday. First time I'd heard anything like that, just wanted to make sure I hadn't been missing something. My gut instinct would be to agree with you 100%. Transportation costs alone, due to fuel prices, will not be going down. And the inflation beast is not even close to being tamed.

Craig-TX

From what I can understand, China is not yet anywhere close to speed. She is supposed to be accelerating for a long time yet. Her appetite for oil is also growing by leaps and bounds.

 

[eric]

I also read somewhere that China is where Japan was 20 yrs ago, and they are rapidly gaining momentum! I can already see the improvement of the Chinese made equipment being sold in the U S. Used to be that if a guy was selling Chinese machines, they were a joke, being much inferior to the Japanese machines, and couldnt even come close to the U S manufactured machnes. But the Chinese producers are coming on quick!
Sad, but very few small businesses, at least the ones I know of, purchase U S lathes and milling machines anymore. A new Bridgeport milling machine, made in U S, runs around $18k. A new Chinese machine, (Lagun or other import) can be had for less than half of the cost.

 

[Craig-TX]

I agree with y'all. The "expert" must be a crack-head. I finally remembered where I read it. I didn't read it. I heard it. On NPR. That should explain part of the deal. Yes, NPR. I know, I know, don't even mention it.

Craig-TX