Wal-Mart's "always low prices" are predicated on cheaply manufactured Chinese goods. But the full equation there has to be something like:
wholesale cost
+ shipping cost
+ Wal-mart overhead
+ Wal-Mart markup
------------------------
"Always low prices"
So what happens when the price of diesel fuel (that's what most jets and container ships burn, right?) goes up?
Moreover, Wal-Mart's model is based on a network of warehouses and a fleet of big rigs to get product distributed to their stores. Won't the price of fuel drive up those costs, as well?
I'm using Wal-Mart as an example because it is, I think, the most egregious example of this pattern. But it's a common one.
So what happens when oil prices climb to $100 a barrel? Considering how rapacious US oil companies are when it comes to selling their refined product, that has to be a huge impact, doesn't it?
So, will peak oil be a blessing in disguise? Will it force a recalculation of the cost of doing business overseas vs. here in the US? Without tariffs, without any overtly hostile trade barriers, just a recalculation of the cost of doing business?
I'm no economist, so I could be totally full of crap. If so, please tear me apart below and edumacate me.