Does CFTC's Investigation Signal a Peak in Crude Oil Prices?

The Inspector General for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission [CFTF] has begun to investigate an earlier report on the commodity markets (see Reuters article). At question is the CFTC's role in an inter-agency task force report that came to the conclusion that supply-and-demand, and not speculation, was responsible for the increase in energy prices. Since the report came to a conclusion that some in Congress did not like, and came at a time that was a few days ahead of a Senate vote on the bill, various senators, including some on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, allege that: "the CFTC knowingly included "seriously flawed" data and the timing was "suspicious."

Interesting. The Senate is debating an important issue, a major regulator provides a report and data in a timely manner, and yet the reaction is to question the timing of the report because it came to a conclusion that did not support their initial assertions. Of course, none of this is surprising, and the report may in fact be flawed, but you have to wonder if they had come to another conclusion if an investigation would be occurring. Of course, usually when action is finally taken, it often is too late. Maybe this is just another indication that crude oil prices have indeed peaked, Gustav notwithstanding.

Disclosure: None

Comments

[BrotherMaynard:]

You're clueless. Congress objected to the CFTC's findings because the CFTC ended up revising their findings RIGHT AFTER the senate voted...findings that before the vote were "no speculators here" to "49% of the market is speculators" after the vote. How can the CFTC be so eggregious -- 0% and 49% is not a rounding error.

2008 Aug 29 10:33 AM

[jjason:]

David, Your article is BS. The facts are:

1. The CFTC has not done a good job for years.
2. The futures industry is scamming the public.
3. Senator Joe Lieberman and Senator Sue Collins knew about the price manipulation in the commodities markets in 2000 and did nothing about it.
4. Professor Michael Greenberger's testimony to the Senate Committee on June 3, 2008 explains how we have been ripped off. ( Did you read Greenberger's report???)
5. What BrotherMaynard, above, said is true.

I don't know who you are, David, but your article is misleading.

You need to do some of your own research to get to the truth about speculating in commodity markets.

Start with Greenberger's report and read some of the articles written by Michael Shedlock on SA.

Also, GO TO:

www.stopoilspeculation.../

for an education on this subject.

By the way, my US senator, Bob Casey, a Democrat, voted for the Senate oil speculation bill and Senator Specter ( a GD Republican) voted against it.

The American public is being cheated. And I have done something about it.



Arlen Specter is a jerk. And so is John McCain.

The Enron Loophole, as they call it, was passed in Bill Clinton's administration and Congress never debated the bill that Phil Gramm snuck into other legislation.

2008 Aug 30 08:07 AM

[Brad_West:]

I agree with teh rest of the posters here...You are a dip stick. Like most republicans John McCain has the "Country Club" ech down pat. Lets make the rich richer and by doing that the rich can help everyone else go up with them...kinda laughable really...as history shows...how exactly did the nobility act in England...yea...they gave there money to the poor and help them out alot...Ahahahahaha...i... you believe that I have some ocean front property I can sell ya in Wisconson. Bet if I say there is oil involved in that property the republicans will run there with there drills.

2008 Sep 04 12:01 PM