Opponents of the plan have given warning that it will make the post less attractive for businesses, further eroding volumes.

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Going forward, we anticipate production volumes to rise even further driven by low car ownership rates in major emerging economies like China and India.

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Boe allows output of oil, measured in barrels, and gas, measured by its volume, to be added together to form one figure and measures production volumes rather than values. (Further explanation about boe can be found here).

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And we can expect more declines in 2013, with analyst Kim Fustier at Credit Suisse forecasting a further 6.1% reduction in oil and gas volumes, from the current 2.3 million boepd, despite a handful of new projects coming on line this year.

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And, since western filling stations handle much greater volumes than their Japanese rivals, they enjoy a further cost advantage.

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With Amazon having substantial experience in operating low-very low margin businesses, we expect the company to further cut down its prices to maintain a price advantage and rely on volumes to drive growth.

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Expedia, the largest US online travel service provider in terms of booking volumes, recently announced a new agreement with eLong Inc. to further expand the global hotel booking options for users.

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As volumes decline, one would expect at least a tiny but of price competition to eat into revenues further.

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