US President George
Bush temporarily suspended some environment rules on motor vehicle fuel this week in an effort to slow the meteoric
jump in gas prices. The effect of this on prices at the pump is as of yet unknown, although it will likely take
the MTBE-ethanol switchover excuse off the table. Bush also has called for halting any further contributions to the
strategic oil reserve, although this is not thought to have a substantial impact on record-high oil prices. Bush is
also calling for an investigation into potential price fixing by oil companies, although similar investigations in past
years have not yielded any evidence of such activity. Besides, someone has to pay for Lee Raymond’s compensation.
Meanwhile, oil
prices have fallen by about 5% in the past week, but the chief of the International Energy Agency doesn’t
foresee any significant drops over the next 1-2 years.