• How MLPs are like REITs
• How to use MLPs to hedge inflation
• The details on the new Cushing 30 MLP Index

• $3.4 billion in grants: Who won?
• Ways to play: stocks vs. ETFs
• Smart grid's ‘ripple effect’ on energy demand

A year or two ago, oil companies were easy targets for consumer opprobrium. Record profits were scored by the majors while drivers were left steaming at the pump over ever-rising prices.

Former IPE Compliance Director Chris Cook argues that speculators are to blame for high oil prices – but position limits aren't the solution.

• The impact of Wall St. refiners
• The invisible tail wagging the dog
• The submarines are running the
  convoys

Uranium prices are rebounding. But how does the long-term picture look?

• Headed for a bull market?
• New mines in Africa
• Uranium stocks outperform

Real-time Inflation Indicator (per annum): 7.0%

Reports by the U.S. Energy Information Administration often roil the markets. Yesterday, for example, trading on the NYMEX turned in sellers' favor after the agency's short-term energy outlook was released. EIA cut its forecast for global oil demand by some 200,000 barrels a day from last month's guesstimate. In reaction, front-month April NYMEX crude finished the day's session $1.36 lower, at $45.71, with gasoline and heating oil following suit.

• The most transparent petroleum marketplace
• Topographic map or GPS profit tracker?
• Margin-free alternatives

Real-time Inflation Indicator (per annum): 7.9%

According to the U.S. Energy Department's weekly inventory report, domestic crude oil supplies increased 7.3 million barrels last week, far exceeding the forecast for a 900,000-barrel build made by Oil Patch analysts. Traders opened the NYMEX futures floor session 3.4% higher ahead of the report, following a 6.7% decline on Tuesday. The United States Oil Fund (AMEX: USO), an exchange-traded portfolio that tracks oil futures, fell $2.77 in lockstep to finish at $41.36.