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Gas prices are rising while crude prices are falling. What gives?
4 R1 K: r+ P* U# R$ E BPublished: Friday, January 16, 2009 | 5:11 PM ET2 G& o4 j) E/ \" [3 c$ Q
Canadian Press NewsItem/NewsComponent/NewsLines/ByLine; ?# @7 h" s$ v: H+ a
% v, U9 e# R, C5 N6 g, TCALGARY - With crude oil prices falling, motorists may wonder why gasoline prices are heading in the other direction." o/ q. s& h8 T5 T( ^7 M/ O
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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.
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Calgarians were paying on average 81.5 cents per litre - about a four-cent jump in just one day.
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"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.
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3 q4 @9 O- g6 A D% c/ CBut Friday's price is still a welcome respite from the $1.40-level gas many Canadian cities faced during the summer.% J. o- Y* c/ `' ^
" O6 X* x+ c, h"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.
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"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."# t7 t+ y( K. |* o
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In Toronto Friday, pump prices were 80.9 cents per litre. On Thursday they were 79.4 and a week ago they were 74.2.
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Vancouver, which has higher gas taxes than other cities, has prices of 94.7 per litre, up from 87.5 a week ago.8 a; w% `" N q/ I& P* u
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The price of crude oil, the main ingredient in gasoline, has been dropping steeply since it's peak of $147 reached in July.; o9 ?+ T+ W( ~& @5 [' g
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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.
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"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.
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Industry players would say they have to account for transportation, marketing and other expenses - not to mention taxes, which vary from province to province.
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But those oil companies - private-sector players in a free-market system - also want to turn a profit.; \) n# P, x/ ]3 t$ {) K/ m
4 V9 `. c% {5 z: p! U( k, X% y7 v"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.
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"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."
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$ Z; }! I6 U) z7 c, t KAnother explanation could be that the February contract for crude oil expires on Tuesday, and the contract for March is already significantly higher, settling at $42.57 on Friday.! m: L1 F7 E' |$ U# U) Z( y# ~
* P! c. `0 n! A% V8 C* F0 s- j b' H"(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., W2 R8 a6 s W
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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.- e/ ~" g$ ?: z/ U2 ?( e
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"I'm not seeing a lot of strengthening in crude oil prices over the next six months," he said.! V$ t) B( e* e$ b* z
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"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."
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' N" R7 _3 L( j: [: e9 LBut 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.
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1 N- b7 b9 S% H6 h5 o"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.
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2 C' @# M) Y# 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." |
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发表于 2009-1-16 19:10
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