Exxon to sell gas stations b/c - get this - they're not profitable

I would LOVE to see their balance sheet. If $4.00/gallon doesn't turn a profit then where is all the money going?

They say they can't compete with the Walmarts etc.
Maybe that's b/c instead of staying competitive they priced themselves out of the market.
Link

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Interesting. I wonder why they don't do anything about it.

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Where I live most of the majors sold off their stations a few years ago, mostly to their local jobbers who now lease or sell them to the dealers.

One of the major advantages of dumping the stations now is getting out from under the hassle and liability of contamination from the underground storage tanks while standards and enforcement are still relatively low.

There are quite a few stations here now sitting empty, with the tanks still in place, because the dealers went under once they had to go it on their own.

A few years ago the city of Detroit placed a moratorium on new gas station builds. If you want to open a station in the city you have to rehab an existing one.

I posted on this in the cash vs credit price thread- the markup on gas is usually 2 to 10 cents a gallon. So if you buy $20 worth (5 gallons) the station makes 50 cents top. The manager at my gas station told me that he makes much much more profit from the convenience store than he does selling gas- and with prices this high, people are skipping that diet coke and cupcake for the road. He's hurting!

I wish the stations could come up with a way to exploit their symbiotic relationship with the oil companies.

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