So a barrel of oil has roughly 35 gallons of crude oil. And it costs $75 roughly.
That comes out to 2.14 per gallon of crude. Or 54 cents per quart. Then they have to remove impurities like wax, unusable other products, etc. I am going to guess 5-10% unusable. So that make a quart of crude worth about 60 cents a quart. Then they refine it where they separate gasoline, diesel, other lubricants, and base oils. I do not know what that costs. Then they take the base stocks and add the additive package, bottle it, ship it to store, place it on shelf and then sell it.
Now in my neck of the woods gas has dropped to 2.65 from about 3.25 a gallon for a savings of about 18-19%. Of course gas cant fall the same % as crude due to applied taxes.
The amount of oil sold is way less than gasoline. And I doubt the add packs have come down in cost and they make up roughly 16-18% of a quart of oil. With all the oil sold at places like Walmart, advance auto, auto zone, etc who have to pay for buildings and employees, it is no surprise to me that a quart of oil has not had any price decrease.
I am sure the oil company makes a little money off of base stocks. But no where near the amount off the other components of crude. I would bet that places who sell the oil make a lot more money and they have the human employees.
Should we see a drop in a quart of oil? Maybe so. But I doubt we will. Even if we did see a 10-15% drop in price, that is only 50 cents a quart. I will take the drop in gasoline any day.
I am not saying you are wrong to expect a drop in motor oil, and I do hope it happens eventually. But I will be surprised if it does happen. Mainly because I think those who sell it will keep the extra % in their pockets.
Anyways that is my 2 cents worth on the topic. I am enjoying the drop in fuel prices myself.
I would also hate to see a drop in motor oil prices because my stash would then have less value on the open market. Just kidding.
Enjoy lower fuel costs while you got it
