The first example is clearly a case of trying to insert a player into a market where they don't belong. Market failure of a sort. Square peg in a round hole and all that.

The second is - the difference in value of gasoline - as compared to the value of dollars - to different market players - over this time period. The variance is reflective of the changes in the difference in value between the 2 commodities to different people, over the time period.