Irving Oil Ltd. is seeking an increase in wholesale margins from the Energy and Utilities Board. (CBC)Irving Oil Ltd. is seeking approval from the Energy and Utilities Board to increase wholesale margins on gasoline and home heating fuel, a move that would lead to higher costs for consumers.
The province’s regulated gas prices allows for a six-cent margin for wholesalers, a fee that has not been increased since the system was put in place in 2006.
In documents filed with the Energy and Utilities Board, Irving Oil says those margins must be increased or it could threaten the financial viability of wholesale companies in the province.
“It is important for the actual wholesale costs to be recovered in the wholesale margins because without cost recovery it will not make economic sense to continue to supply retailers where the wholesale cost increases exceed what can be recovered from retailers,” stated Matthew Holland, the petroleum manager of Irving Oil Marketing G.P. in a document filed with the regulator.
“As the costs need to be ultimately recovered, it is necessary to provide for a reasonable opportunity of cost recovery to maintain a competitive marketplace. “
There are 59 wholesalers registered in New Brunswick.
Irving Oil would like to see the wholesale margin for gasoline to rise to 7.36 cents per litre from six cents per litre.
Further, the company would like to see the wholesale margin for heating oil to rise to 6.28 cents per litre from five cents per litre.
Irving Oil has requested the financial documents that it is using to justify its request to be kept confidential.
“Public disclosure of the confidential information will harm Irving Oil by providing its competitors, suppliers, retailers and other counterparties with access to commercially and financially sensitive, information with respect to a critical component of its operations,” said Len Hoyt, a lawyer for Irving Oil in a statement to the board.
Retail margins increased in 2011
When the Energy and Utilities Board sets its weekly price, a certain portion is set aside for the cost of fuel, plus wholesale and retail margins. And a maximum of 2.5 cents per litre can be added for a delivery charge.
While Irving Oil is seeking an increase to its wholesale margins, retailers have already benefited from an increase in their margins. In June 2011, the board approved the maximum retail margin for gasoline to increase to 5.9 cents per litre up from five cents per litre.
Irving Oil said much has changed in the oil and gas industry since the regulated gas system came into place in 2006.
“Since the time when the wholesale margins were established, there have been substantial increases in wholesale costs,” Holland said.
“Wholesalers cannot and should not continue to have their unit margin eroded without the ability to recover their lost revenue in a timely manner,” Holland added in his statement.
US wholesale stockpiles grew 0.6 percent in April - AP - msnbc.com
WASHINGTON — U.S. wholesale businesses restocked faster in April, responding to a strong gain in sales. The increase could be a good sign for economic growth in the April-June quarter.
The Commerce Department says stockpiles grew 0.6 percent at the wholesale level in April, double the March gain. Sales by wholesale businesses jumped 1.1 percent in April, nearly three times the March sales gain.
Stockpiles at the wholesale level stood at $483.5 billion in April. That's 25.6 percent above the post-recession low of $384.9 billion in September 2009.
It would take roughly five weeks to exhaust all wholesale stockpiles at the April sales pace. That's considered a healthy time frame and suggests businesses will keep restocking to meet demand.
When businesses step up restocking, they order more goods. That generally leads to increased factory production and higher economic growth.
Slower growth in inventories held back growth in the January-March quarter. In the first three months of this year, the economy grew at an annual rate of 1.9 percent.
The increase in wholesale inventories was bigger than economists had forecast. That could signal that inventory growth will pick up and boost economic growth in the April-June quarter.
But stockpile growth largely depends on the spending habits of U.S. consumers and businesses.
Weaker job creation in April and May could force some to scale back spending. And pay has risen just 1.7 percent over the past 12 months. That's slower than the rate of inflation for that period.
Sluggish job growth and weak pay raises threaten to drag on consumer spending, which would weaken growth. Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity.
One positive change: Gas prices have tumbled since early April. That could give Americans more money to spend on appliances, vacations and other discretionary purchases.
Many businesses cut back on restocking last summer fearing that the economy was on the verge of another recession. When it became clear that it wasn't, they raced to rebuild stockpiles and keep pace with consumer demand.
Stockpiles at the wholesale level account for about 27 percent of total business inventories. Stockpiles held by retailers make up about one-third of the total. Manufacturing inventories represent about 40 percent of the total.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
iPad Shopping App Brings the Most Savings to Shoppers – ShopAtHome.com Launches “Coupon Codes Plus” - Yahoo Finance
DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
ShopAtHome.com, the largest coupon search engine that connects millions of consumers to the best deals and savings both online and in-stores, today released Coupon Codes Plus, the first free iPad application offering both online coupon codes and cash back rewards from thousands of the web’s largest retailers. With this app, consumers can shop intelligently on their iPads, knowing that they are getting the lowest possible price from retailers like Macy’s, Sephora, Kohl’s, Crocs, Lowe’s, and thousands more. Additionally, through exclusive negotiations with major online stores, Coupon Codes Plus will also offer iPad shoppers a collection of amazing deals not available anywhere else.
The worlds of coupons and mobile shopping have been merging since the advent of smartphones. Nearly half of U.S. consumers – 88.2 million – will use online coupons and codes during 2012, according to an analysis done by eMarketer. By the end of 2013, eMarketer says, 96.8 million U.S. adults will have used such discounts. With millions of active members, ShopAtHome.com is the largest coupon search engine that integrates the best discounts from online coupons, deals and cash back rewards. The introduction of the Coupon Codes Plus app makes it easy for consumers to find coupons for the stores they already shop at – and the in-app shopping experience means coupon codes stay with the shoppers until they check out.
“ShopAtHome.com’s new app, Coupon Codes Plus, changes how consumers can shop on the iPad – it combines shopping and saving into a single experience,” said Marc Braunstein, CEO and founder of ShopAtHome.com. “Before, consumers had to do all the work to find the most savings. Our new app has more than 100,000 online coupons along with thousands of cash back rewards to help shoppers feel confident they are saving the most when they shop.”
For ShopAtHome.com, the market need for an app like this was clear. With upwards of 12 million visitors to the site in any given month, iPad traffic has grown steadily – more than doubling from 2011 to 2012. Beyond that, iPad users consistently engage and purchase more than any other traffic source. April statistics from ShopAtHome.com show that iPad users were three times more likely to make a purchase than any other user.
Coupon Codes Plus is free to download and instantly allows iPad shoppers the ability to start saving once they open the app. With over 100,000 coupons spanning 18,000 of the largest online retailers, users can copy coupon codes to enter into their favorite retailers’ sites, search daily deals and get automatic cash back rewards from ShopAtHome.com.
The application is now available for download from the App Store at iTunes. For more information on ShopAtHome.com, please visit www.shopathome.com.
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About ShopAtHome.com
Founded in 1986 by husband-and-wife team Marc and Claudia Braunstein, ShopAtHome.com is the web’s largest provider of online coupons, cash back rewards and printable grocery and restaurant coupons. The only destination integrating the best discounts from coupons, deals and cash back, the site has evolved from its early roots as the ‘Catalog of Catalogs’. Throughout this transformation, the company has kept the same goal – helping improve the shopping experience for millions of shoppers. As a true coupon powerhouse, ShopAtHome.com aims to provide the most savings to consumers whether they’re shopping at the grocery store or at their favorite online retailer. For more information visit www.ShopAtHome.com.
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U.S. Wholesale Inventories Rise More Than Expected In April - RTT News
6/8/2012 10:18 AM ET
(RTTNews) - U.S. wholesale inventories increased by more than expected in April even as wholesale sales increased, according to figures released Friday by the Commerce Department.
Total inventories of merchant wholesalers were recorded at a seasonally adjusted level of $483.5 billion at the end of April, a 0.6 percent increase from revised March levels, which were also up slightly from initial reports.
Economists had expected wholesale inventories to increase by about 0.5 percent.
On a year-over-year basis, U.S. wholesale inventories were up 8.2 percent from April 2011 levels.
April also saw an increase in sales at the wholesale level, with the Commerce Department figures showing a 1.1 percent increase to a seasonally adjusted level of $415 billion, up 6.8 percent from April 2011 levels.
Despite the larger increase in sales than in inventories, the inventories-to-sales ratio held steady at 1.17 in April.
The increase in wholesale inventories was driven by a 1.1 percent increase in inventories durable goods, which more than offset a 0.1 percent decline in inventories of non-durable goods. The April increase in durable goods inventories is the strongest since May 2011.
Automotive wholesalers recorded a 1.7 percent increase in inventories, while professional equipment inventories rose 1.4 percent, paper inventories jumped 3.9 percent, machinery inventories climbed 2.4 percent and petroleum inventories advanced 2 percent.
Inventories of groceries, drugs and furniture posted declines in April.
On the sales side, sales of wholesale durable goods were up 0.1 percent, while sales of non-durable goods rose 1.9 percent.
Automotive sales recorded a 3.8 percent increase, while wholesale petroleum sales jumped 4.8 percent, the largest increase since April 2011.
Wholesale sales of furniture, metals, machinery, paper goods and groceries all fell notably for the month.
by RTT Staff Writer
For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com
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