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LANSING, Mich. - Rick Santorum said Monday that high gas prices sapped homeowners' ability to pay their mortgages and plunged the United States into recession, a far different reading of the causes of the recession than that of the economists who studied the crisis.
"We went into a recession in 2008 because of gasoline prices. The bubble burst in housing because people couldn't pay their mortgages because we're looking at $4 a gallon gasoline. And look at what happened, economic decline," Santorum said at a campaign stop.
Wall Street Journal, Real time Economics, Justin Lahart:
In a paper presented at the Brookings Panel on Economic Activity Thursday, University of Calif.-San Diego economist James Hamilton crunched some numbers on how consumer spending responds to rising energy prices and came to a surprising result: Nearly all of last year’s economic downturn could be attributed to the oil price shock.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Prices at the pump kept up their record-setting run overnight, a nationwide survey of gas station credit card swipes showed Thursday.
Regular unleaded remained at its record high price of $4.114 a gallon, according to a daily survey from motorist advocacy group AAA.
In the past year, gas prices have risen 35%. High fuel prices have caused Americans to limit vacation travel and cut back on driving.
Record high fuel prices have also been driving up the price of goods, adding to the pain felt by consumers. Retail prices jumped 5% on an annual basis in June, the largest rise since 1991 when fuel prices surged due to the first Gulf War.
originally posted by: The angel of light
...but even worst of the situation of gas prices of 2007 that broke the USA economy opening the door to the great recession.
Economy, Steven Hansen, Contributor:
We went into a recession in 2008 because of gasoline prices. The bubble burst in housing because people couldn't pay their mortgages because they were looking at $4 a gallon gasoline.
Adrian Hanni, Medium:
Bad loans, greedy bankers and a burst housing bubble: These factors caused in 2008 a devastating financial crisis, which engulfed the world economy in the abyss. That, at least, is the official story of the most serious economic downturn since the 1930s, whose effects are still noticeable today. Strangely, the decisive role that a scarce oil supply and exploding oil prices played at the forefront of the crash is excluded in most accounts. Largely misguided economic stimulus packages were the result.
originally posted by: jkm1864
We are still in a depression so gas prices are the least of our worries. I'm willing to bet that You are one of the ones that actually believe the unemployment records.
originally posted by: The angel of light
Katrina was not the reason of that collapse, nothing has been said here about that...
The great recession was the consequence of the inability or lack of decision of the George W Bush administration to cut on time the escalation of the gas prices at that time...
Chris Isidore, CNN Money,
Unfortunately, one of the surest cures for high gas prices is a new recession. Few things cut demand, and prices, more surely. People lose jobs and don't have to commute. Drops in wealth kill plans for vacations and other discretionary travel. And with the drop in demand comes lower prices.
The record high for gas prices came on July 17, 2008, when a gallon of regular rose just above $4.11, according to motorist group AAA.
A little more than five months -- and one financial meltdown -- later, prices ended 2008 at $1.62 a gallon. With the economy on the brink of a new depression, no one was getting too excited about cheap gas.
originally posted by: The angel of light
There is No contradiction at all in None of my statements, again you are trying to get attention speaking of a topic really is not of your domain or maliciously misleading the readers and putting in my mouth your own obvious wrong points of view.
originally posted by: JanAmosComenius
a reply to: The angel of light
Based on your logic, Europe should be in permanent recession because of 3 times higher prices of fuel ....
James Hamilton, Professor of Economics University of California,
The implication that almost all of the downturn of 2008 could be attributed to the oil shock is a stronger conclusion than emerged from any of the other models surveyed in my Brookings paper, and it is a conclusion that I don't fully believe myself. Unquestionably, there were other very important shocks hitting the economy in 2007-08, most notably the problems in the housing sector. But housing had already been subtracting 0.94% from the average annual GDP growth rate over 2006:Q4-2007:Q3, when the economy did not appear to be in a recession. And housing subtracted only 0.89% over 2007:Q4-2008:Q3, when we now say that the economy was in recession. Something in addition to housing began to drag the economy down over the later period, and all the calculations in the paper support the conclusion that oil prices were an important factor in turning that slowdown into a recession.
originally posted by: The angel of light
I am sorry but I am not going to discuss more with you knowing that for the caliber of your replies it is evident this neither your subject nor your topic. Besides it, this is not a contest of egos, but a thread of actual knowledge.