Summer gas prices

The bottom line is, it is going to be an expensive summer.

Michael Tran, managing director for global energy strategy at RBC Capital Markets. Gas prices hit another record high today, and analysts expect prices to remain higher than usual for some time.

• Why It Matters: The price of fuel continues to rise. The average price per gallon of gasoline is about $4.60 as of today; one year ago it was $3.04.
• Why the soaring prices? The war in Ukraine and the banning of Russian oil contribute to the drastic rise. Fuel producers also cut back on production during the pandemic, but now that people are getting back on the road, gas and oil companies are struggling to catch up with the rising demand.
• Expect prices to remain high: “The oil market is a lot like the stock market and we’ve seen the stock market all over the place. It is crazy and the oil market operates the same way. It’s so volatile right now and it’s very headline driven. It doesn’t take much to spook the oil market,” said Andrew Gross, the national spokesman for AAA Inc. 
• Something to consider: Despite increased fuel prices, the number of people on the road also continues to climb. “People are willing to pay higher prices to make up for lost travel over the last few years,” Tran said.

Even as gas prices rattle economy, Americans can’t stay off the road (Washington Post)

Record gas prices for this long ‘unprecedented’: AAA (Fox Business)