JACKIE: WELCOME BACK, BLACKROCK
CEO WARNING PEOPLE SHOULD BE
WORRIED ABOUT SOARING FOOD
PRICES AND OIL PRICES.
THE ONE THING THAT I WORRY ABOUT
THAT WE DON’T TALK ENOUGH ABOUT
IS FOOD, THIS ISN’T JUST AN
INFLATION CONCERN.
THEY ARE ALSO -- THERE ARE ALSO
GEOPOLITICAL CONCERNS THAT
RESULT FROM THIS.
JOINING ME NOW THE CHAIRMAN AND
CEO OF UNITED REFINING COMPANY,
RED APPLE GROUP, JOHN, JOHN,
WONDERFUL TO SEE YOU THIS
MORNING.
YOUR TAKE ON WHAT LARRY FINK HAD
TO SAY AND FOOD PRICES BECAUSE A
LOT OF PEOPLE ARE WORRIED ABOUT
THEM AND THEY ARE WONDER IF THEY
WILL RETREAT AS WE ARE SEEING
GAS PRICES PULL BACK A LITTLE
BIT.
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
>> WELL, TWO WEEKS AGO I
PREDICTED THAT WE HAVE REACHED
PEAK PRICES ON OIL WHEN WE
REACHED 125, 130 LEVEL AND WE WE
HAVE RETREATED SINCE THEN.
ON FRIDAY WE ALMOST HIT $80 A
BARREL WHICH IS A NEW LOW AND
FOOD PRICES WILL PEAK OUT AND
REACH PEAK PRICES IN SEPTEMBER
BECAUSE THERE’S A LAG BETWEEN
OIL AND FOOD PRICES AS THEY GO
UP.
IT’S ALWAYS MAYBE 90-DAY LAG IN
FOOD.
30-DAY LAG IN PRICES IN THE GAS
STATION FROM CRUDE OIL.
THE BIG -- THE BIG QUESTION MARK
IS, THE RECESSION DOES NOT HAVE
TO HAPPEN.
I’VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THAT.
INTEREST RATES.
THE FED, THE WHITE HOUSE SPENT
TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS, TRILLIONS
OF DOLLARS TO TAKE US OVER THE
COVID CRISIS.
MY OPINION IS THEY SHOULD DELAY
INCREASING IN INTEREST RATES
BEFORE THEY DESTROY A REAL
ESTATE INDUSTRY AND OTHER
INDUSTRIES IN THE UNITED STATES
WITH HIGH INTEREST RATES.
JACKIE: YEAH.
>> DELAY IT 30, 60, 90 DAYS
BECAUSE OIL PRICES, IF WE GIVE
THEM A LITTLE BIT OF OPTIMISM
WILL COME DOWN.
THEN FOOD PRICES WILL STABILIZE
SO THE RATE OF INFLATION WILL
NOT GO OUT OF HAND.
AND MY CRITICISM OF PRESIDENT
BIDEN IS HE SHOULD HAVE WENT TO
TEXAS, HE SHOULD HAVE WENT TO
ALASKA, HE SHOULD HAVE WENT TO
CANADA.
HE WOULD HAVE GOTTEN MORE
RESULTS IN OIL THAN HE DID IN
SAUDI ARABIA WHICH IS VERY SAD.
JACKIE: TOUGH TO GO TO CANADA
WHEN YOU KILLED THE EXTENSION ON
THE KEYSTONE PIPELINE.
HE WAS SORT OF HAT AND HANDS AND
AT THIS POINT THE ADMINISTRATION
DOESN’T KNOW WHAT TO DO AND
INVESTMENT IS GOING TO TAKES 2
TO 18 MONTHS TO BUILD OUT TO SEE
RESULTS AND THEY REALIZE THAT
THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE FINALLY
SUFFERING RIGHT NOW.
I WANT TO PASSER THROUGH SOME OF
THE THINGS THAT YOU JUST
MENTIONED, JOHN, BECAUSE IT’S
REALLY IMPORTANT.
I UNDERSTAND THE LAG OF RETAIL
GAS PRICES ROUGHLY 30 DAYS.
I UNDERSTAND THE LAG AND THE
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OIL AND
FOOD PRICES, 90 DAYS.
BUT THERE ARE ABOUT 30% CHANCE
RIGHT NOW THAT THE FEDERAL
RESERVE WILL TAKE THE
OPPORTUNITY AT THE END OF THE
MONTH TO HIKE RATES 1 FULL
PERCENTAGE POINTS WHICH WOULD BE
VERY IMPACTFUL WITH RESPECT TO
THE HOUSING MARKET AND
EVERYTHING THAT YOU SAID TO TRY
TO COOL INFLATION.
WHAT I’M WORRIED ABOUT AND WHAT
I THINK LARRY FINK WAS TRYING TO
GET AT ON THE FOOD SIDE, PART OF
THIS IS NOT JUST ABOUT OIL BUT
IT’S ABOUT SUPPLY SIDE, SUPPLY
AND DEMAND ECONOMICS.
THE SUPPLY IS TOO SHORT AS A
RESULT OF WHAT WE ARE SEEING
OVERSEAS AND WHAT WE ARE SEEING
IN THIS COUNTRY WITH RESPECT TO
CROPS AND YIELDS AND SO I
WONDER, I WONDER IF JUST OIL
PRICES COMING DOWN IS ENOUGH TO
BRING US THOSE -- THE RELIEF AT
THE GROCERY STORE BY SEPTEMBER.
>> YOU NEED OPTIMISM FROM THE
WHITE HOUSE POINT OF VIEW TOWARD
THE AMERICAN PEOPLE BECAUSE
EVERYTHING THAT’S BEEN DONE
LATELY HAS HURT THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE AND HELPED THE REST OF
THE WORLD.
THERE IS A PROBLEM IN FOOD
PRICES AND COULD HAPPEN AS
INTEREST RATES GO UP, AS THERE
WILL BE SHORTAGES OF CERTAIN
PRODUCTS.
THERE’S ANOTHER PROBLEM THAT HAS
NOT COME TO LIGHT YET AND I
DISCUSSED IT WITH MARIA A FEW
MONTHS AGO IS A LOT OF OUR MAJOR
FACTORIES, A LOT, MAYBE ABOUT 20
OF THEM HAVE BURNED DOWN IN THE
LAST 18 MONTHS AND HAVE BEEN
DESTROYED AND NOBODY IS REALLY
INVESTIGATING WHAT’S GOING ON IN
THAT END.
>> THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
TOUTING LOWER GAS PRICES, LOWER
DIESEL PRICES AS WE ARE SEEING
THE FOOD PRICES SOAR BUT
SHIPPING IS ALSO A KEY ASPECT OF
FOOD PRICES AS WELL.
I’M WONDERING IF LOWER PRICES
WITH RESPECT TO FUEL WILL HELP BECAUSE WHAT I SEE WHEN I LOOK
BECAUSE WHAT I SEE WHEN I LOOK
AT THIS EQUATION AND WHENEVER I
HAVE SEEN WITH THE PRICE OF
STARBUCKS, CUP OF COFFEE GOING
UP, I’VE NEVER SEEN IT COME DOWN
AND THE SAME WITH POPULAR
HOUSEHOLD ITEMS THAT WE SEE AT
THE STORE.
I WONDER IF SOME OF THIS
INFLATION WITH RESPECT TO FOOD
IS NOW EMBEDDED IN THE ECONOMY.
>> IT WILL BE HERE TO STAY.
JACKIE: YEAH.
>> BECAUSE PEOPLE DON’T TAKE IT
DOWN AS EASILY AS THEY TAKE IT
UP AND THAT’S WHAT I WORRY ABOUT
AND THAT’S WHY I SAID, WE WILL
REACH PEAK PRICING IN FOOD BY
SEPTEMBER.
JACKIE: YEAH.
>> WE WORRY ABOUT THE CONSUMER
AND WE WORRY ABOUT OUR COUNTRY.
JACKIE: WE SURE DO AND WE THANK
YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US
TODAY.