NEW YORK — The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline topped $3 yesterday.
It’s the first time that the average retail price has been above $3 a gallon at Christmas. The average pump price rose about a cent and a half a gallon overnight, to $3.01, according to AAA, Wright Express, and Oil Price Information Service. That’s 14 cents more than a month ago and 43 cents higher than a year ago.
Pump prices have traditionally dropped after the peak summer driving season and into the winter, because fewer people are on the road. This year, however, gasoline prices rose as oil prices climbed from about $80 a barrel in August to more than $91 yesterday. That’s the highest it’s been in more than two years.
Analysts think oil and gas prices will rise as the economy gets stronger and demand picks up. But some economists worry high energy prices could slow the nation’s economic recovery.
If higher oil prices persist, the average share of income spent on gasoline could rise to almost 10 percent by spring, with pump prices around $3.75 or more a gallon. Most analysts say oil prices have been rising not because of strong demand and dwindling supplies, but on hopes that an improving economy usually means more demand for oil and gas.
Positive economic news helped push oil prices higher yesterday. The Commerce Department said consumers spent more in November than the month before. And the Labor Department said the number of people applying for unemployment benefits fell by 3,000 last week to 420,000.
While oil and gasoline prices are climbing, the price of one of the main heating sources in the nation — natural gas — is falling. It’s down about 11 percent in the past two weeks. Yesterday it lost 6.9 cents to settle at $4.083 per 1,000 cubic feet on the Nymex.
