Essay - Hurricane Katrina and the Economy the Purpose of This Paper...

Hurricane Katrina and the Economy

***** purpose of this paper is to introduce, discuss, and analyze ***** topic ***** the U.S. economy. Specifically it will ***** what effect Hurricane ***** has had on ***** U.S. economy so far, and what some of the implications for the future may be. Hurricane Katrina's full effect on ***** United States' ec*****omy may take years to *****y develop and understand. Katrina's effect may even be felt worldwide by the time all the affects are analyzed and tallied up. The immediate costs ***** quite simple ***** see - skyrocketing fuel costs instantaneously after ***** hurricane hit, lost jobs, ***** billions ***** dollars in aid. However, there are other long-term costs in human life, inflation, and rising interest rates that can only play out over *****. One thing is quite certain. The U.S. economy is going to suffer from the affects of ***** Katrina, it just remains to be *****n just how much it will suffer.

Perhaps the largest affect ***** will have on ***** economy ***** the U.S. is in energy prices. Directly ***** ***** hurricane hit the Gulf Coast, Americans saw ***** prices rise ***** as much *****.***** cents per gallon of gas, ***** then steady at a sm*****ll ***** over ***** they were before the hurricane *****. Most ***** did not realize what a great concentration of oil refineries and s*****rage facilities existed in and around New Orleans. *****sweek reporter Robert J. Samuelson writes, "What Wall Street is to money, or Hollywood is ***** entertainment, the ***** Coast ***** to energy. It's a v*****st assemblage ***** refineries, production platf*****ms, storage tanks ***** pipelines—and the petroleum engineers, ***** consultants and roustab*****s who make them run" (*****). During the hurricane, many of these facilities were damaged or destroyed, and few of ***** have come back on line to supply energy. Some of them may ***** be on***** for years, if ever. Another ec*****omic ex*****t notes, "Already there are calls for policy changes to fix the flaws in America's energy infrastructure exposed by Katrina: its tight refining capacity, its dependence on offshore drilling in ***** hurricane-prone Gulf, its love affair with big, *****efficient cars" ("Oil and Troubled Waters"). Even worse, a large percentage of American oil imports enter the country though the same area. Samuelson continues, "Oil production in the Gulf ***** Mexico accounts for nearly 30 percent of ***** U.S. **********. Natural-gas production is roughly 20 *****. About 60 percent of the nation's oil imports arrive at Gulf ports" (Samuelson). Thus, the fuel American's avidly consume every day is going to cost more, and it ***** not going ***** stop costing ***** any time soon. It will cost more for businesses to produce products, to heat homes and *****, and to commute ***** and forth to work. In fact, some experts are predicting American's fuel costs could rise anywhere from 40 to 75 percent over last year's numbers because ***** ***** (Samuelson). *****, Americans are going to be paying more for goods, services, and fuel,