Royal Dutch Shell plc, or as many of us know it as, just Shell announced yesterday that it will have to eliminate 5,000 jobs due to the 62% drop in 3rd quarter net income.

It reported a net income of $3.3 billion or 53 cents per share, but that is less than half of the net income that it reported last year of $8.5 billion. Since the drop, the company has to do something, so like most companies the first place it cuts is its workforce. The cuts represent about 10 percent of the total number of employees for the company.

CEO of the company, Peter Voser, said in a statement, “Our third quarter results were affected by the weak global economy. We see some indications that energy demand and pricing are improving, but the outlook remains very uncertain, and we are not expecting a quick recovery.”

The company did not disclose where the cuts would be coming from, just that they would be coming.

It is quite annoying when a company starts to expect the kind of money they were making when things were outrageously overpriced. Of course the company make $8.5 billion in the third quarter last year, that is when gas prices were outrageous (and not to mention oil was at nearly $150 a barrel). With oil at half the price it was a year ago, it only makes sense that the company’s profits would be taking a tumble. I mean, we’re paying $2.50 at the gas station when we used to be paying $4.00, or more in some cases.

It is also irritating when the first thing a company resorts to as a cost cutting measure is to get rid of jobs. Could the executives not put their minds together to get a better idea than to cut jobs? This is 10 percent of the company’s workforce that they are talking about.

I suppose, though, in the near future that gas prices will be ridiculous again and that the economy will be on the right track once more. Until then, everyone can expect stories such as this one to come out about how jobs are being lost and profits are falling.

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There are many ways to cut your costs during the summer, especially if you plan on doing a lot (or any) driving. With gas prices going back up, traveling this summer may be looking more expensive than when you planned your trip. Well, there are ways to save a little bit of money on that road trip this year.

As always, what I will start calling the golden rule of frugality, SHOP AROUND!!! Comparison shopping means that you are going to get the best deal. At the same time, don’t drive 30 miles out of your way to save $.02 a gallon, that’s crazy and really not worth it. You can do price comparison on websites like GasBuddy.com and some GPS systems even have gas stations filtered by price. These websites do depend on users to enter in gas prices, so the prices you see may not be what they are for that day (or that week if you’re going to a small town).

Secondly, if you’re a cash carrying member of the population use it. Some gas stations have started trying to pass merchant fees off to gas buyers and have started charging more for gas if someone is paying with a debit or credit card. This is a legal way for the gas stations to help with how much they’re paying for credit card fees. The good news for you is that usually these gas stations that charge more for credit card transactions are usually cheaper than everyone else.

You should also perform regular maintenance on your car. Giving your car a tune up and getting the oil changed according to when the manufacturer says can lead to higher MPGs and more miles on your car. Keeping your tires inflated can also help improve your MPG’s by 3% over the course of a year, which could total to 20 gallons of gas! Air filters are another one of those little things that sometimes we forget about that can increase your fuel efficiency.

A little tip I picked up is that if you like stopping frequently for gas, don’t fill up your tank because the less full your tank is the less heavy your car is and the more miles per gallon you will average. I usually fill my car up to ½ a tank, and then refill at ¾ a tank. It is time consuming, but overall I’m getting better mileage out of it.

Lastly, if you really want to cut back on fuel consumption for your road trips, take it easy and try not drive too aggressively. The faster you accelerate the more gas you are burning.

Over the summer, a little picture was being passed around the internet of a small gas station or convienicne store that had a sign in front that said “Beer, now cheaper than gas.” Since then oil prices have tanked and now beer sales have fallen.

From the AP:

SABMiller said lager volumes fell 1 percent in the three-month period that ended Dec. 31, compared with the same period a year earlier, because of the economy.

“Consumer demand has been affected by the current global economic slowdown, and has continued to weaken in many of the group’s markets,” the company said in releasing its quarterly trading update, which does not provide financials.

So I suppose this means that beer is not recession proof, however sales of beer haven’t declined as fast as sales of other consumer goods…and I don’t see Budweiser asking Congress for a bailout either.
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