Gasoline prices spiked for Memorial Day holiday
10:22 AM Tue, May 26, 2009 | Permalink
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Gasoline prices took another big jump over the last week. The typical price at the pump for self-service regular gasoline hit $2.46 Tuesday morning, up 12 cents from just over a week ago and up 16 percent from the end of April, when the per-gallon price was $2.12. The last big spike was a 15-cent-per-gallon jump at the beginning of the month, according to the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources. The price was up a penny just from Monday, according to AAA. And there may be more increases to come. Gasoline futures for June delivery were higher last week than the week before on the New York Mercantile Exchange, as was crude oil for July delivery, which was around $60.50 per barrel Tuesday morning. Crude makes up about 56 percent of the price of a gallon of gasoline. "We're suggesting that prices may settle in at, or around, $2.40 to $2.50 a gallon at their peak this summer," said Lloyd Albert, a spokesman for AAA of Southern New England. You may not be pleased by the increases, but you can take some solace that gasoline prices are a lot better than a year ago, when self-serve regular was selling for $3.99. It was destined to peak at $4.12 on June 16, 2008, according to the weekly survey by the state. "Historically this time of year, May through July, is when the prices are highest, and we're seeing it again this year. But relatively speaking, we're far better off than we were last year," Albert said. Diesel fuel, at $2.47 for the second week in a row, was selling at $4.90 a gallon at the end of May 2008. Home heating oil was above $4.35 a year ago; this Tuesday morning it was at $2.19, down two cents from May 18. Perhaps because the prices are lower than a year ago, people seem to be more willing to drive for their vacations. AAA estimated that they number of people who expected to be traveling more than 50 miles over the Memorial Day weekend, depending on the weather, would be up about one and a half percent over last year. "We had five holidays we measured last year. The travel forecast was down for each and every one of them, so this is the first time we're seeing a bit of good news on the travel front," said Albert. The trend is particularly strong in New England, where holiday travel was expected to be up 7.2 percent. That was "the largest increase projected in any part of the country for Memorial Day," he said, fueled in part, perhaps, by so many places to travel to by car. But the recession is still having an impact. An AP-Gfk Poll released earlier this month found that personal financial issues have prompted one third of Americans to cancel at least one trip. "All indications from all sources we've seen are showing that, in general, petroleum demand is down and has been down for many months now, and the stockpiles of crude are the highest they've been since 1990," Albert said. 
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