Around the markets: Anti-energy-speculator bill advances in Senate -- oh but wait, it wasn't their fault, anyway

A few highlights from around the markets Tuesday:

---Hurry, before oil falls below $100! Senate Democrats pushed ahead with their bill to restrict speculation in energy futures markets. The Senate voted 94-0 to begin debate on the bill, which would order the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to put limits on speculative trading in oil and natural gas futures, as Bloomberg reports here.

But is the horse already out of the barn? Near-term oil futures fell $3.09 to $127.95 a barrel today, the lowest closing price since June 5. The price has slid 12% since it peaked at $145.29 on July 3. Natural gas prices have taken an even bigger drop: Near-term gas futures fell 4.2% to $10.07 per million British thermal units today, adding to a decline that has clipped 26% from the price since July 3.

---Actually, the horse was never in the barn: The Interagency Task Force on Commodity Markets, set up last month by the CFTC to look into what, exactly, was driving oil prices, issued its preliminary report today. The task force’s conclusion: "Current oil prices and the increase in oil prices between June 2003 and June 2008 are largely due to fundamental supply and demand factors." The analysis "does not support the proposition that speculative activity has systematically driven changes in oil prices."

Read the full 45-page report here. If nothing else, all of your oil-market chart and data desires will be fulfilled, I promise.

--Well, that explains it, chief. The Associated Press reports: "President Bush, in an unguarded moment, said Wall Street ‘got drunk and now it’s got a hangover.’ He made the comment at a political fundraiser in Houston last Friday after asking members of the audience to turn off their video cameras. Someone obviously ignored his request and a snippet wound up on a blog Tuesday by Miya Shay of ABC affiliate KTRK in Houston.

"There is no question about it. Wall Street got drunk," the president said. "The question is, how long will it [take to] sober up and not try to do all these fancy financial instruments?" Read the full story here.

Comments

[Brad]

Looks like YouTube already, er, "redacted" the video. Must be a matter of national security.

[Gary Noel]

Gee, it can't be the speculators fault. But remember two years ago when oil spiked? Funny thing is that it came down just before the election. Want to bet that happens again??? This time if gas is "only" $3 a gallon at the election will Bush be able to say that he was right in his "prediction" a week or so ago that the "market will take care of it."

[gm]

Supply and demand, speculation - its a host of factors.