What onions teach us about oil prices

Fortune/CNNMoney ^ | June 27, 2008 | Jon Birger

[proxy_user]

Before the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission starts scrutinizing the role that speculators may have played in driving up fuel and food prices, investigators may want to take a look at price swings in a commodity not in today's news: onions.

[proxy_user]

Well, let's see if Congress can do this for oil and gas.

Gas will cost $2/gallon on Tuesday, rise to $11 by Friday, and then fall to $4 over the weekend. People will spend more time driving around looking for bargains.

[TheRobb7]

“What onions teach us about oil prices”

THEY BOTH MAKE US CRY.

[MichiganMan]

You know, not everyone likes onions.

[allmost]

It’s a lot easier to avoid high priced onions than avoid fueling your vehicle to go to work. Apples and oranges IMO.

[A_perfect_lady]

Good find! That’s pretty interesting!

[Dr. Sivana]

only to crash 96% by March 2008 on overproduction

That number cannot possibly be right. To use made up numbers, if onions went for 50¢/pound, and shot up to $2/pound (400% increase), and then fell 96%, that would mean 8¢/pound. The farmers wouldn't even bother shipping at that price point. I find that many of these reporters don't known how percentages work.

[allmost]

Only to crash %96 :) Yeah this reporter failed many a math class.

[Bubba_Leroy]

You know, not everyone likes onions.

Everybody likes cake. You know what else everybody likes? Parfaits. Have you ever met a person, you say, "Let's get some parfait," they say, "Hell no, I don't like no parfait"? Parfaits are delicious.