Francisco Blanch Quotations

Simply put, the U.S. petroleum products market has become too large and too complex for the existing storage capacity base. As a result, we continue to believe that petroleum product price volatility will stay extremely high in the coming months.

Four refineries may come back in the next two or three weeks. For another three or four refineries at least, we will probably have to wait for more than a month. We have seen some efforts by the U.S. government telling people not to buy gasoline if they don't need it, to conserve energy.

I agree that growth in production capacity this year will be a bit higher than demand growth. Still, the IEA always tends to be over-optimistic in terms of non-OPEC supply growth.

I think people are still looking to get into commodities and it is surprising as many fund managers believe we are close to the point where the economy is going to be harmed.

We believe the recent demand pullback is mostly a short-run response to a price spike, not a long-run shift in consumption patterns.

There are better ways of investing in commodities than the indexes.

We've had the deepest refinery season in a very long time. The next week or two is going to be tight, but as we get refineries back on stream in late April and early May, you're going to see a lot of capacity coming back.

The relatively high inventory levels are providing some cushion to the market, but of course demand is rising in the U.S.. We are in a more comfortable situation than a few months ago, but the structural problems this market has haven't gone away.

It's been a very warm winter in the U.S., so prices are pressed to fall as inventories build and demand slows down. I agree that growth in production capacity this year will be a bit higher than demand growth.

The attacks are a concern given Nigeria's importance as an oil-producing nation. It's a factor that will keep prices supported.

Once it gets really cold, you have both sides of the Atlantic bidding for the same gas. This winter we had a very cold period in November and December, and there was a lot of competition between the U.K., Spain and the U.S.

After the sharp rise in gasoline prices, we believe that crude and transportation fuel prices will remain at historically high levels for a prolonged period of time, reflecting a tighter global balance.

In hindsight, the decision to sell oil shares looks like a bad one.

I don't think the party is over. You still have positive demand and supply constraints.