Topping $3 per gallon, gas prices hit record high
Costs called stable despite global tensions
NEW YORK -- US gasoline prices hit a record high near $3.03 a gallon at the end of last week but should begin to fall as the summer driving season ends, according to the Lundberg industry survey.
Average US pump prices reached $3.0256 per gallon of regular gasoline Friday, eclipsing the record of $3.0150 reached on July 21, Lundberg reported.
Despite the new high, Lundberg noted that the price has been stable in light of geopolitical tensions and supply disruptions.
``The emphasis should be placed on the relative stability of the price in light of the volatility of crude oil prices and refinery problems, rather than the small one- penny change in price," said survey editor Trilby Lundberg.
Oil rose on news of
However, ``absent any extreme changes in oil or gasoline supply, retail prices are likely to slide," Lundberg said. ``There's plenty of gasoline, and gasoline supplies will be even more flush when we're out of the summer driving season."
US oil futures for delivery in September were at $73.20 a barrel, down $1.15, in midday trade yesterday on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
According to the AAA daily fuel gauge report, which uses a different methodology than the Lundberg survey, the current average price for a gallon of unleaded gasoline is $3.004, still below the $3.057 record reached on Sept. 5 of last year after Hurricane Katrina.
The Energy Information Administration, the US government's top energy forecasting agency, has forecast gasoline would stay at about $3 a gallon for the rest of the summer, not dropping significantly until the end of the summer driving season after the Labor Day holiday in September.
