Futures markets now largely set the price of oil. Yet these contracts rarely involve an exchange of real barrels of oil. Most oil is traded on what is called the spot market or through other contracts between producers and users. The prices, however, are usually based on futures prices.
目前期货市场在很大程度上决定了油价，然而这些合同几乎没有涉及到真实的桶装石油交易。大多石油是在现货市场或通过生产者与用户之间的其它合同达成交易。然而石油的价格通常都以期货价格为基础。
Doug MacIntyre is senior oil analistanalyst with the United States Energy Information Administration. He notes that the position of the government is that market forces of supply and demand are driving today's high oil prices. But he also notes that more money has been going into futures.
Doug MacIntyre是美国能源情报署的高级石油分析师。他指出政府的现况是，市场供应的压力与需求促成了现今的高油价。但他还指出，更多的钱流向了期货市场。
This money can be from oil producers and users. But it also comes from banks, big investors called hedge funds and speculators with no need for oil. Speculators try to guess the direction a market will go; in some cases they profit when prices drop.
这些钱可以来自生产商和使用者，也可以来自银行、被称为对冲基金的大型投资商和对石油并没有需求的投机者。投机者试图猜测市场走向，在一些情况下他们从价格下跌中获利。
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and others say it is not clear that speculators are to blame for high oil prices. They say markets need buyers and sellers willing to take more risk than average investors. But critics say oil prices have gone up too quickly recently to be explained by supply and demand alone.
财政部部长Henry Paulson和其它人表示，还不能确定将油价升高归咎于投机者。他们说，比起一般的投机者，市场需要的是愿意承担更多风险的买者和卖者。但评论家说，油价在近期飙升而无法仅用供求来解释问题。
Hedge Fund: 对冲基金
posted @ 2008-06-29 11:15
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