Good ROI
According to the FT, high oil prices are beneficial, at least to some. Farmers in the Indian state of Rajasthan are rediscovering the camel:
As the cost of running gas-guzzling tractors soars, even-toed ungulates are making a comeback, raising hopes that a fall in the population of the desert state’s signature animal can be reversed.
“It’s excellent for the camel population if the price of oil continues to go up because demand for camels will also go up,” says Ilse Köhler-Rollefson of the League for Pastoral Peoples and Endogenous Livestock Development. “Two years ago, a camel cost little more than a goat, which is nothing. The price has since trebled.”
The shift comes not a moment too soon for a national camel population that has fallen more than 50 per cent over the past decade, to about 450,000, according to government figures…A sturdy male with a life expectancy of 60-80 years now fetches up to Rs40,000 ($973), compared to Rs5,000-Rs10,000 three years ago…
A camel looks like a good return on investment at these prices. You can buy a camel for a dozen or so tanks of gas, and it runs for 60-80 years. Heck of a deal.
May 5th, 2008 at 2:38 am
So where are the futures contracts on camel prices? The camel-breeder IPOs?
A camel looks like a good return on investment at these prices.
I agree that there are still good values to be found. However, at the high end, there are troublesome indications that a bubble may be forming.
Time for a bear raid on camels?
May 5th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
Of course one has to remember that a camel runs on bio-fuel. Farmers will have to set aside acres to grow camel feed. Horrors!