OK, so riddle me this, Batman...
Since Katrina, the refining capability has improved, right? I mean, we've recovered a lot (but not all) our refining capability. So the price of gasoline (the refined distillate of that $70/bbl oil) would, if the market is not being diddled, come down, as the supply of said distillate is up. Therefore, for a constant cost of the raw material, the price of gasoline should be dropping as the ability to refine it increases. Basic supply-and-demand market economics. Furthermore, as the cost of the raw material decreases, and the capability (and fixed cost) to refine said raw material remains constant, the cost of the refiend product should continue to decrease, again if the market is not being diddled.
So here we are, with increased manufacturing capability (with reference to Katrina-aftermath levels), and a roughly 12% drop in the cost of the raw materials that go into that manufacturing process, roughly constant demand...and increasing prices for the manufactured product.
Things that make you (well, maybe not you, BeeP, but the rest of us) say, "Hmmmmm...".
