These articles were written as a public service as part of an effort to educate Alaskans on the financial matters facing our State.
Fiscal year 2020 came to an end on June 30th, 2020. Most of the official data for the year are now available. Here is a brief wrap up of how the year went. After 9 months of gains, Alaska ended the year down 40,000 jobs Alaska’s economy was up 1,700 jobs during the first three[…]
Here is your monthly round-up of what happened to Alaska’s economy and financial situation. The unemployment rate hit a record high The Department of Labor data for April gives us the first official glimpse at just how bad the pandemic hit our economy. It shows a seasonally adjusted rate of 12.9% (The unadjusted rate stands[…]
If you’ve been watching the finance committees work this session, you’ve almost certainly heard an argument about not taking “excess” draws out of the earning reserve account (ERA). There is some truth to the assertion. But, there’s a larger false narrative afoot. Today, I want to take a moment to explore the issue – both[…]
Now that we’ve discussed the physical market and the futures market, we can finally turn to understanding how Alaska’s oil get’s priced. It boils down to a combination of factors that deal with each of these markets and their dynamics. Alaska North Slope (ANS) crude doesn’t have a spot market (there just aren’t enough barrels)[…]
In part 1 of this series, I laid out who the buyers, sellers, and shippers of Alaska North Slope (ANS) oil are. Those players make up the physical market, in which market fundamentals – the laws of supply and demand – determine prices. But, there is another market that buys and sell crude oil. It’s[…]
After all the craziness of negative prices last month, a reader asked if I would write an article explaining how pricing Alaska’s crude oil works. That seems like a good idea, although I can’t do it in one digestible piece. So, the plan is to write a three-part series that can act as an educational[…]
Most Alaskans spent a lot more time at home in April than they usually would. Many businesses were closed and a significant share of the labor force worked from home. The Coronavirus Pandemic generally trended downward during the month of April, ultimately leading to some restrictions getting lifted by the end of the month. Here[…]
If you happen across some information about Alaska’s current financial situation, you probably get the impression that we are in dire straights. When oil prices crashed 77% in late 2014, the State’s oil revenues collapsed – leaving a gaping hole in the budget. By all accounts, we’ve been deficit spending ever since. But that is[…]
A barrel of Alaska North Slope (ANS) crude oil was selling for $22.47 at the time this article was written. That’s down 67% from the beginning of the year. In terms of the state’s royalty oil, that price swing represents a reduction of almost $3 million per day. For the producers, it means that they[…]
Alaska is blessed with natural beauty and natural resources. In many ways, our State is the envy of governments around the world. People from outside spend thousands of dollars to enjoy what we see every day. Meanwhile, we pay no income or sales tax, plus receive a dividend check each year. Unfortunately, that last sentence[…]