[Skinny Shooter]

to get this thread back on track, this article states what I was trying to articulate earlier: http://www.readingeagle.com/re/lead/1515605.asp

Over a barrel
High prices for oil spill over into everyday life because many household goods have petroleum as a prime component.


If gas prices are giving you a headache, this could give you a migraine: Gasoline is only one of many items you buy that is petroleum-based and dependent on the price of a barrel of oil.
Even the trusty aspirin has ties to the oil industry.

So do the shaving cream, toothpaste, deodorant and mouthwash you use daily.

Even the disposable diapers covering a baby's backside are made, in part, from oil.

That means that as the price of a barrel of oil goes up, the cost of manufacturing these products goes up.

Many Americans don't realize that a barrel of oil is used for more than just gasoline, said Karen Matusic, spokeswoman for the American Petroleum Institute in Washington.

For instance, petroleum is a key ingredient in plastics manufacturing, she said.

“I think a lot of this gets taken for granted,” she said.

The price of oil can hit you at the gas pumps and on the road.

The cost of a ton of oil-based asphalt has gone up $93 in the past year, said Roger J. Schmidt, president of EJB Paving & Materials Company, Route 61, Ontelaunee Township.

That means some municipalities are taking a longer look at what roads they may pave this year, Schmidt said.

Last April, EJB purchased liquid petroleum at $215 a ton, but now is purchasing the same product for $308 a ton, Schmidt said.

“It is increasing so fast we can't keep up,” he said.

Edward Leh, a Centre Township supervisor, said the cost of asphalt means the township may pave fewer miles of roads this year.

“It's putting us into a bind,” he said.

Other local companies are also feeling the pinch of $70 for a barrel of oil.

Crude futures recovered from four days of losses, lifted by supply worries after the International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran defied the United Nations Security Council by enriching uranium. A barrel of light crude rose 91 cents to settle at $71.88 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Richard Partlow, general manager of specialty products for Brentwood Industries Inc., Reading, said the cost of raw plastic purchased by his company has increased 25 percent in the past year.

The company takes raw plastic and uses molds to turn it into a variety of consumer products such as wheelbarrows and parts for trucks, Partlow said.

The company is hit doubly by high oil prices because it relies on petroleum heat to run the equipment, Partlow said.

“It is a significant hardship for us and our customers,” he said.

All of those increases in manufacturing mean the cost of the finished product goes up, Partlow said.

“Ultimately, it ends up at the consumer's doorstep,” he said.