 鲜花( 98)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Gas prices are rising while crude prices are falling. What gives?* @) S" S" n( t2 m' h9 I+ \
Published: Friday, January 16, 2009 | 5:11 PM ET
, f2 @* Z3 `7 [9 ~7 HCanadian Press NewsItem/NewsComponent/NewsLines/ByLine1 X; l R7 q+ r! m- o2 R O
. s$ @. s2 {; T. Q% \$ S+ XCALGARY - With crude oil prices falling, motorists may wonder why gasoline prices are heading in the other direction.5 w0 f u% W! T O% S0 t3 e
1 y6 F4 j. V/ j% I
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., B# C( a# h$ ` M; j9 K
; y4 A+ a- d3 y K
Calgarians were paying on average 81.5 cents per litre - about a four-cent jump in just one day.
4 {6 R2 j) B1 N5 D5 P' T+ b0 B8 X% m$ B0 G9 p+ i7 R+ Z
"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.( S6 r0 |$ n n" o x
. U' V& O A' p% VBut Friday's price is still a welcome respite from the $1.40-level gas many Canadian cities faced during the summer./ c, A# O6 o' O+ f2 A0 _
* u& a6 Y& {9 f: G) ]5 l"I definitely changed my habits in the summer. I was going to go on two road trips, which I did not go on by virtue of the fact that the prices were so high," Lawnikanis said.1 L* N5 q- v$ D% X, h
3 f! X7 C T7 @+ {/ D
"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."( @) I9 t2 i% T$ v+ I0 M
4 b& {3 k" x! Q) L% DIn Toronto Friday, pump prices were 80.9 cents per litre. On Thursday they were 79.4 and a week ago they were 74.2.
5 m. b& H" O) j& z% a6 a4 m0 ~. b+ R" n2 A- [: G- X* G
Vancouver, which has higher gas taxes than other cities, has prices of 94.7 per litre, up from 87.5 a week ago.
) j# y- F0 q' i( l% a+ a- W$ ]6 b$ N. g
The price of crude oil, the main ingredient in gasoline, has been dropping steeply since it's peak of $147 reached in July. ?9 W) A, O$ y, S8 i
7 y) X; F' s& Q4 q8 {- K- J: I+ J
The February contract for crude oil settled at US$36.51 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down from more than US$50 a barrel a week ago.
: \! t# Y& o6 y% _1 t7 I) M
+ P3 J' v& Z0 w) L"Crude oil is an important input into the distillation of gasoline. But there's a lot of other factors as well," said Todd Hirsch, senior economist with ATB Financial in Calgary.$ L/ |& Z# ~, @
! C8 y7 B9 G- W D$ c$ q, H! I
Industry players would say they have to account for transportation, marketing and other expenses - not to mention taxes, which vary from province to province.& ^$ G8 F! f5 f3 W5 B' A" Y! ^
; Q$ W7 Z3 x K: v. E) y
But those oil companies - private-sector players in a free-market system - also want to turn a profit.
6 u# h6 Y V5 d2 j
1 y" M4 i' S; D3 y# L* r2 y"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( t, L4 j1 G D5 H) n
. P2 o8 }" i4 E1 }% h"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."
0 y4 M, e) z: g$ U2 {
& U" c: ^5 V6 [. `& V: UAnother explanation could be that the February contract for crude oil expires on Tuesday, and the contract for March is already significantly higher, settling at $42.57 on Friday./ b4 h+ _8 K/ }! t
, U. W6 y" I2 _& i
"(The oil companies) might have realized that while prices were low in the last couple of weeks, they knew that there was going to be a correction," Hirsch said.( i8 v V' ?3 [, @1 d5 `
+ c" n$ F' b- L
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. |& w2 c1 l% @; l
+ z7 {/ h4 C0 x: R6 k"I'm not seeing a lot of strengthening in crude oil prices over the next six months," he said.
A. c# p1 ]9 G, L7 m* q" b5 L4 ~& r. \# e* q+ K% h2 ^2 ?, g
"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 ], ?7 a5 I# \4 q! z
: R3 j: b. H6 u) i9 o/ i# o
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.7 E! [1 [+ W. V( M" W f6 }9 V
1 e1 j* G7 K; F0 q/ H
"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.( t: X3 N; i2 s8 w$ U) l: J7 e
) y. k5 P: K8 n
"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." |
|