Happy Holidays from Crawford Oil and Propane! There are many developments to watch in the coming weeks. First of all, the sanctions on Iran will be very important. If sanctions on crude are implemented, we will see higher costs. Libya’s production would not be able to make up a loss in Iran’s crude shipment to the world. Second, the Euro crises will be coming to a head (hopefully) in the next week or so. We continue to see promises of “problem solved” and rallies in the arket, followed the next day by “crises fears return.” The back-and-forth reporting will probably continue until a clear direction is taken. In the mean time, we will experience volatile price swings. Third, the unrest in the Middle East continues to heat up. The US and Pakistan are in conflict, Egypt is in protest, and Syria is under sanctions from the Arab League. The Middle East region is very sensitive to oil pricing, therefore, we will be watching. And fourth, the always important China will be followed. If China continues to dwindle in demand for oil based on low exports, crude could level out to the $75-80/barrel range.
Propane: I’ve been saying this for 4 months, and it’s still true. Propane is very stable andcontinues to trade in the narrow range of 5 cents. Until crude breaks out in any direction, I expect this trend to continue.
As always, these statements are only my opinions. If you have any questions, please feel free to call.
Once again, Happy Holidays and have a great December!
Jon Crawford –Vice Pres.