 鲜花( 98)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Gas prices are rising while crude prices are falling. What gives?1 [, L9 \; x% L! ?) B: }
Published: Friday, January 16, 2009 | 5:11 PM ET
j4 U9 S/ d) YCanadian Press NewsItem/NewsComponent/NewsLines/ByLine
4 |4 a( d5 q$ W1 f
! ~3 V& E" }4 ?* SCALGARY - With crude oil prices falling, motorists may wonder why gasoline prices are heading in the other direction.' l2 u6 f+ \$ ]
/ N6 d" b& o9 i k1 IThe 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.* b9 t8 Z+ f- S
3 D6 A2 n( O2 u. g+ F, _5 B
Calgarians were paying on average 81.5 cents per litre - about a four-cent jump in just one day.
% C' u' k% D+ O# J% C8 t" X2 a0 G7 T9 B' ?
- w7 r( \$ l6 O$ c' A- \% E9 `& \ I U"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.
% d, x# p) a- ]; b, ^" _8 v/ J4 Y+ l, o* G
But Friday's price is still a welcome respite from the $1.40-level gas many Canadian cities faced during the summer.
: Z5 d3 G( ~0 N8 _( g; p4 U" W
0 U& s) f- D) H e( m"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.
$ W( m! D Q9 o& W9 p) y
& z9 ]- \: g: y% s"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."/ Z% X6 x0 V! r# w6 W' o3 N
8 o; \- o% i Q
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.; v8 R- T0 o& r6 r
1 C) w f4 @% S- tVancouver, which has higher gas taxes than other cities, has prices of 94.7 per litre, up from 87.5 a week ago.4 V8 l* _! }- L1 C; C" C1 `, L1 @
4 O4 I9 M7 l @3 Y1 D$ U. g
The price of crude oil, the main ingredient in gasoline, has been dropping steeply since it's peak of $147 reached in July.2 f: F; ?) i M
" f5 G1 b0 R! Y& E( u! ]
The February contract for crude oil settled at US$36.51 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down from more than US$50 a barrel a week ago.* G+ l2 Y% k6 g
6 ?3 Y' o. L5 f"Crude oil is an important input into the distillation of gasoline. But there's a lot of other factors as well," said Todd Hirsch, senior economist with ATB Financial in Calgary.- O, U2 t/ q& g; ~3 e
+ j1 n: j3 Y4 @: D9 H, T0 e+ b$ _
Industry players would say they have to account for transportation, marketing and other expenses - not to mention taxes, which vary from province to province.9 Q0 R0 Y* X; d; y% ], n
" e7 ?$ J0 P3 y$ P! dBut those oil companies - private-sector players in a free-market system - also want to turn a profit.
5 M/ U: e9 O0 h: o* t
! V9 h$ o% ?! h1 e; l" I. v9 p% g/ E"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.2 N9 d3 b% P( W8 k7 f. Z2 M4 A& }
, c, q2 \2 a# E+ }# D"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."4 |, N* F$ L# ?0 ?/ G
5 s/ n6 {* N) w* ~! CAnother explanation could be that the February contract for crude oil expires on Tuesday, and the contract for March is already significantly higher, settling at $42.57 on Friday.
# `; g4 G; v- j$ ^: c& K0 H! I8 p; l R
"(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./ e0 Y' t% s6 C0 @
& S! _/ o* p1 v. c! |( 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.
# f, d1 j: M2 ]% k) E- l/ L8 ?& M& s
"I'm not seeing a lot of strengthening in crude oil prices over the next six months," he said.) C! M: A- x- D# c
! c0 l2 g C; e5 J3 J% ]
"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." Z& ]6 {# H; p, g0 t; V( D
/ _3 }! P/ b T% S2 U
But 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.& I8 o! l$ `* _4 B" F8 a; Q6 q
6 t0 |8 n, h2 E- b
"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.
# P# f7 K4 K/ v* z4 }1 g
_4 V. t$ i2 V2 c! M. N0 E"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." |
|