Airlines have continued to increase fares in spite of their lower fuel costs;

That's because the airlines usually try to stave off dramatic price swings by purchasing fuel in advance at whatever negotiated price they can get. This keeps fares down when gas prices spike, but unfortunately don't have the ability to lower fares at the same time gas prices are down.

That said, I am sure the airlines are buying up all the fuel that they can right now while prices are low as a hedge against any future increases.

Looks like we can get back on track with the "downer news" today ! (and I am NOT talking about the GOP "debate")  

Dow briefly plunges 400 points after oil rout; transports fall 2%
Lets hope for a buying spree this afternoon?

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/01/15/us-markets.html

 

Last edited by Common Sense (1/15/2016 10:37 am)

Just Fred wrote:

When oil prices drop we cheer because it costs less to fill the tank, but realize it also causes the DOW to drop, too.  Anyway, coupled with the mess in China and the understanding that our stock market is tied into a global economy, I'm not sure there is much we, as a nation, can do alot about it. 

But low, sell high sounds easy doesn't it?  Wasn't there some tycoon some years ago who said he bought when the rest of the investors were selling, and sold when the rest were buying?  Anyone know who that guy was?

 

It is not really that low oil prices cause the DOW to go down, but more that low oil prices reflect two things - a slowing global economy and an oversupply of oil. The former is more responsible for the DOW to contract as most companies nowadays are firmly entrenched in the global economy. 
 

Last edited by tennyson (1/15/2016 11:55 am)

Getting pretty bloody out there.
On the bright side, I cashed in a fair amount of stock in January 2015 to have cash on hand for youngest Daughter's college in 2017.

Also prepaid some mortgage.

Those two things were my best "investments" in 2015.

Too bad I didn't put the 401k in cash