He wants to beef up CFTC, Pryor says

By Gary Lookadoo Staff Writer

The Benton County Daily Record

July 28, 2008

BENTON COUNTY - Solving the nation's energy problems should include an overhaul of a commission that tries to but can't adequately watch some transactions, said U. S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark.

"Our Commodities Futures Trading Commission, here in the U. S., I think, is not really equipped to deal with the changing marketplace," he said.

Five years ago, about $ 13 billion was traded in oil at any one time; today it's $ 240 billion being traded for oil, and the market has changed in other ways, too, Pryor said.

In the market now there are hedge funds, investment banks, money from various countries and retirement funds, among other things, and as a result, most investors in oil aren't doing anything with it but trying to profit anyway, Pryor said.

"Most of these big investors are not trying to actually do anything with the oil. They're literally just trading it to make money. So what they're doing is, they're turning these trades, and once the price goes higher, they cash out. And the cycle never really stops. And they're just making money left and right. I'm proud of them for making money. But the problem is, we're paying for it," he said.

A Senate bill he supported is intended to strengthen the CFTC, making it more transparent and giving it more authority, Pryor said.

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