The U.S. Energy Information Administration in its monthly energy forecast said it expects gas prices to average $2.10 a gallon between April and September, marking a 20-cent jump from the same period last year and surpassing last May's record high of $2.06 per gallon.
EIA said that on Monday the average price paid at the pump across the United States was $2 per gallon-more than a 7-cent increase from last week and up about 9 cents from a month ago. "Recently, gasoline prices have been rising in response to late winter rising crude oil prices and high rates of refinery utilization," the EIA report said.
Meanwhile, the cost of a barrel of crude oil today dropped slightly from near-highs, hovering just below $55 this morning on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"We're still using $41 oil for 2005 and $35 for 2006," UBS analysts said in a report released late last month. "That's looking less tenable with every passing week, so we're also supplying indicative estimates under the assumption that oil comes in at $45/$40 per barrel for 2005/2006."
Though large U.S. carriers adjust fuel surcharges for cargo shipments based on oil prices, they have been unable to similarly adjust passenger fuel surcharges. A recent fare hike implemented in many domestic markets last month, however, reversed a months-long trend of declining airfares and may help to start offset crippling jet fuel costs
(BTN, March 7).