 鲜花( 98)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Gas prices are rising while crude prices are falling. What gives?8 p7 \+ d+ I7 g5 t
Published: Friday, January 16, 2009 | 5:11 PM ET1 v5 l" c0 K3 S% p+ S; U
Canadian Press NewsItem/NewsComponent/NewsLines/ByLine+ Z8 p- k1 z5 F+ Z2 h# b
) F0 p) i. q1 o' iCALGARY - With crude oil prices falling, motorists may wonder why gasoline prices are heading in the other direction.
* [3 L# n& o1 }+ g+ O
9 R! R7 J* e4 b4 {: ^/ lThe average Canadian pump price rose to around 81.75 cents per litre Friday - more than three cents more than a week ago, according to the price-tracking website Gasbuddy.com.. i1 p* D+ u* k# j% c8 L7 X5 a1 ^
6 g0 M1 M. z( zCalgarians were paying on average 81.5 cents per litre - about a four-cent jump in just one day.: A3 E1 O! j0 L8 X% b
& G1 \- C) e0 s: P W* U; o r"I don't actually understand it and I do work in the oil and gas industry, so I'm perplexed about it," said Paul Lawnikanis as he filled up his truck at a Calgary Esso station, which was selling gas for 80.4 cents per litre.0 D3 L3 B7 j3 I( l9 G
2 C3 F/ L& i; N* iBut Friday's price is still a welcome respite from the $1.40-level gas many Canadian cities faced during the summer.( a# w* f& a8 C! i
. f. o5 u* U5 B6 J
"I definitely changed my habits in the summer. I was going to go on two road trips, which I did not go on by virtue of the fact that the prices were so high," Lawnikanis said.
0 h: ]6 H! i1 u" r# z. Y* T8 z
/ n( ?) s" f( Q6 u' Y"Because of the fact that the prices are so reasonable, I've actually taken the liberty to drive more. I've really enjoyed doing more driving."
6 J" H" i/ C: P" M
2 v* ?' L4 b/ O# e K sIn Toronto Friday, pump prices were 80.9 cents per litre. On Thursday they were 79.4 and a week ago they were 74.2.( r0 U2 Z, L7 D
2 X% U1 S, U' B$ |
Vancouver, which has higher gas taxes than other cities, has prices of 94.7 per litre, up from 87.5 a week ago.& N5 t2 y) _ _5 W% o
8 c4 b4 ?9 N. C4 \6 @The price of crude oil, the main ingredient in gasoline, has been dropping steeply since it's peak of $147 reached in July.
: ]$ K- {$ [2 r" f8 l; P4 f: e8 p6 i) l- h4 R$ Z# a# G
The February contract for crude oil settled at US$36.51 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down from more than US$50 a barrel a week ago.4 Y3 J9 w1 n0 z9 E$ Z# f5 Q4 ?
8 N7 P5 C6 [& g2 m
"Crude oil is an important input into the distillation of gasoline. But there's a lot of other factors as well," said Todd Hirsch, senior economist with ATB Financial in Calgary.
l# F$ t, X U. G5 S1 H$ I2 l: Z
$ L% O" Z) C H0 p) l# x6 jIndustry players would say they have to account for transportation, marketing and other expenses - not to mention taxes, which vary from province to province.6 I9 L3 j6 H2 Q! h" R. M
' d" u; E0 Y$ s0 N: M) z$ v, B$ FBut those oil companies - private-sector players in a free-market system - also want to turn a profit.) @: j4 ~2 D% q! q0 |
+ W) m5 J4 r" V1 X' o
"Without question those gasoline prices are going to be the highest they think they can get away with without their competitor undercutting them," said Hirsch.
+ ?& {" w% b" w8 ~* J, q2 \; R1 o+ N: W C( G; G7 x- ~+ i
"They're out to maximize their profits for their shareholders. I don't think there's anything evil going on in them trying to get the highest price. Every retailer in the country does this."
8 V) P+ N7 A+ `% @! k+ S; _# Z1 j8 I+ ^! A2 E
Another explanation could be that the February contract for crude oil expires on Tuesday, and the contract for March is already significantly higher, settling at $42.57 on Friday.. S. i5 ^# Y" d, J
% U" }2 K4 I" O3 j! U
"(The oil companies) might have realized that while prices were low in the last couple of weeks, they knew that there was going to be a correction," Hirsch said.3 D$ ?7 s3 \! B& C
6 E) X3 ?0 r/ Q
Hirsch expects pump prices to bounce between 60 and 90 cents per litre over the next few months, but not retesting the heights of last summer.' v+ \5 e7 |2 {3 M, L+ l
7 `9 V/ H/ I# m, v! A H B, X5 x"I'm not seeing a lot of strengthening in crude oil prices over the next six months," he said.
, q% X6 [" Z0 ?" p# z6 A* u1 c
. v6 K; d: f: ? A9 q% O- c# B( f"In the next six months I would expect to see gasoline prices more or less in the range they're in now, maybe firming up a little bit towards the spring and summer driving season as demand rises."1 H% j2 t6 [* i) l2 d# S
( a6 d2 V: \9 n# |3 i2 dBut Gasbuddy.com co-founder Jason Toews said he sees gas prices going higher than their current levels because of a slowdown in Alberta's oilsands and expected production cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exploring Countries.
+ ^& K% C- ?2 ~( W; z/ R4 U, w' o( p2 s+ c. p9 k0 t
"With lower supplies of crude oil in the market it's going to push crude oil prices up, especially if the economy starts to recover a little bit," Toews said.2 `8 c9 M5 F, u L
- \& E9 L7 z) b# z6 p" L"Once the summer demand for gasoline comes, we're going to see gas prices go up quite a bit from where they are right now. We're going to see a return of a $1 per litre gas for sure and we may even see up to $1.20 per litre." |
|