 鲜花( 98)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Gas prices are rising while crude prices are falling. What gives?8 P3 x% K( B. }# n' E8 h I
Published: Friday, January 16, 2009 | 5:11 PM ET- [8 e; V( d: l1 z% x$ ^
Canadian Press NewsItem/NewsComponent/NewsLines/ByLine, H* t M" q3 V4 \% z
3 x/ v7 C+ S8 ?* L( S2 c1 ~. U, gCALGARY - With crude oil prices falling, motorists may wonder why gasoline prices are heading in the other direction.. ?9 G; S$ u6 A# Z4 c" f- Y8 X
0 @- A% f5 F+ k6 B4 o" h
The 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.+ n, S" N T% I( K
! |" w8 n3 h- V9 p# L+ w
Calgarians were paying on average 81.5 cents per litre - about a four-cent jump in just one day.1 L: w6 q7 I( y7 d
. q% ]3 A, m2 b% k, u( u" E"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.1 P) p/ K ^2 Q! M/ {+ R
1 P; w. E2 x* `/ L! q% l9 M2 P* D
But Friday's price is still a welcome respite from the $1.40-level gas many Canadian cities faced during the summer.+ l8 ^5 C. W1 `0 O3 m- w8 W4 o
8 R; R# n# Z# K' B- u"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.
) {. C9 L; Z; ~0 A
1 t3 f# g* y2 y4 ~* X! W) r"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."* j, o& V1 w) d
' @; K5 Q/ b: N" x0 K, IIn Toronto Friday, pump prices were 80.9 cents per litre. On Thursday they were 79.4 and a week ago they were 74.2.
) y, N& @, j7 F+ s+ n& m9 J* U% Z- B2 ^! q+ |+ }% W* O
Vancouver, which has higher gas taxes than other cities, has prices of 94.7 per litre, up from 87.5 a week ago.7 u/ K. f6 k. S# S3 f1 ~
# x# U; R4 d3 R" @5 u& P0 Q
The price of crude oil, the main ingredient in gasoline, has been dropping steeply since it's peak of $147 reached in July.% H# g6 Z+ ^' p& S
T4 I! B: n' [% sThe February contract for crude oil settled at US$36.51 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down from more than US$50 a barrel a week ago.; ?5 t6 E% t; @9 U+ T
& P9 @; m+ c/ q2 V. i: v6 O; Y3 k) u) K"Crude oil is an important input into the distillation of gasoline. But there's a lot of other factors as well," said Todd Hirsch, senior economist with ATB Financial in Calgary.( b+ x; g, Q+ p* r
; Q/ M' M; L, I7 e; @5 W* m8 D
Industry players would say they have to account for transportation, marketing and other expenses - not to mention taxes, which vary from province to province.
: O: }1 J8 m: X" \9 t
4 n* I& V. {+ A) E9 v h X* HBut those oil companies - private-sector players in a free-market system - also want to turn a profit.
0 v) E! f. Q" n! [9 S! W: I8 w$ l" O$ q9 H- I
"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.
1 B- A8 a) n) L7 D6 I
6 u! N( g7 O: G8 Z+ m6 c4 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."
) z7 ^6 g* S5 {# ?9 k; c2 I. U1 C2 S) y2 _1 c
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 $42.57 on Friday.0 G6 j1 [( H0 c0 H& s) f7 ~
2 l# ]/ R0 ^( T"(The oil companies) might have realized that while prices were low in the last couple of weeks, they knew that there was going to be a correction," Hirsch said.) i" Z. [$ w, Q3 Z" t& z1 Z
( E. D0 [! }7 b: e1 U' D8 tHirsch 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.
2 f- J, p& J7 R7 g- y3 ]) G9 T& h9 \% f! z" `1 K7 ?# P
"I'm not seeing a lot of strengthening in crude oil prices over the next six months," he said.# E3 i) s9 [* z V
9 W: Z* v$ R3 S/ H"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."
. \3 S# N' u) w
6 d V. J' c3 nBut 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.
( g7 w7 ~7 \! R( F( w5 m. h3 r o8 b. \' i: f- c ~
"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., J3 F6 _ K) _8 u6 ?% n/ }
0 Y4 g( T8 W, s0 X"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." |
|