 鲜花( 98)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Gas prices are rising while crude prices are falling. What gives?/ L# d( d* |6 M# D9 ]4 @
Published: Friday, January 16, 2009 | 5:11 PM ET0 E, u6 C! v) P; B3 s( V4 B
Canadian Press NewsItem/NewsComponent/NewsLines/ByLine
# z# x0 b' C* c9 S% y+ x
- m/ h$ }0 q, {1 R- }$ a0 zCALGARY - With crude oil prices falling, motorists may wonder why gasoline prices are heading in the other direction.
5 z: U8 ~9 f4 J( ^8 K7 M
. N1 r# N& h( k h# H9 M CThe 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.
& u( D* Z" j. J% [* @& I" f
5 s- y2 o4 z/ f/ ^, I+ iCalgarians were paying on average 81.5 cents per litre - about a four-cent jump in just one day.4 L) {1 E1 C/ |- u& v
) C+ I- P! n9 J& f4 X5 d; c3 V"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.
8 Y R5 h8 F0 B8 A
6 e& l3 _3 U/ m% j# g" r7 _But Friday's price is still a welcome respite from the $1.40-level gas many Canadian cities faced during the summer.
3 P+ A- w" ~% }: V0 `5 D9 F. M
1 m* t5 o+ O# D/ C+ Q"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.. d8 h1 G, F A F3 J- q
5 O0 \3 p2 c. `5 B6 i" ~, @"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."* E1 h( B j/ l8 s) K- \
5 @4 q4 {2 `: `7 y) P2 _' C( N- `2 ~* PIn Toronto Friday, pump prices were 80.9 cents per litre. On Thursday they were 79.4 and a week ago they were 74.2.
% {% f' J1 D2 Y' k0 i0 U8 ^2 V5 n1 P8 \- ~
Vancouver, which has higher gas taxes than other cities, has prices of 94.7 per litre, up from 87.5 a week ago.: j+ Z3 q: s U' D% c8 V" M
% h" s/ ?& C) D
The price of crude oil, the main ingredient in gasoline, has been dropping steeply since it's peak of $147 reached in July.8 n7 S' n' L$ v' i! ~- g) d
2 p; G3 [" s8 U6 t& uThe February contract for crude oil settled at US$36.51 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down from more than US$50 a barrel a week ago.
0 W v: @# U, ^+ }" v. d9 ?7 t1 p' \7 O! E& P' ~) u% c
"Crude oil is an important input into the distillation of gasoline. But there's a lot of other factors as well," said Todd Hirsch, senior economist with ATB Financial in Calgary.9 l; S# ~% h0 m$ N% g
! k! o- O1 Z1 S: k: f
Industry players would say they have to account for transportation, marketing and other expenses - not to mention taxes, which vary from province to province.
$ ?5 w1 J' e' ^
" v1 K- _2 j9 f. _% y+ }0 ?But those oil companies - private-sector players in a free-market system - also want to turn a profit.
/ L, J: [" [9 G2 r9 w" |" [5 ~2 Q7 ]5 u F$ c& F
"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.- q7 j0 g' ?' K% y; c
( r# t, `, f2 W6 r: U7 A4 s+ u, 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."
6 B3 t S1 @& w8 V5 O; U! G6 ?, P& q
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 $42.57 on Friday.' P2 n+ v6 h6 C" z9 ~
- x$ c3 X+ C6 p9 e! A( S' v"(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.7 J9 ]2 ]- r& S. ^
& y7 \* \ I5 eHirsch 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., A4 {8 s+ u* L# G/ E
1 y) X) Y# b6 ], C- v% l( y0 W
"I'm not seeing a lot of strengthening in crude oil prices over the next six months," he said.
/ ^. u- O4 s. Y: r$ _ L$ m% s/ H* o; m6 U
"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."+ d' K3 g* X) a. R1 }$ ] `
0 f0 }# R0 O% x9 G* [
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.
$ \$ n6 G3 M8 ~9 \
# p' C" T4 a1 k) \; j' S( @# B) L"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.4 H, ?# d$ z) M7 v: C Y
+ x z9 M Q) G) P, I. |
"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." |
|