Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
May 10, 2007 issue
Gas Prices Rise Again,
Conflicting Reports For Prices This Summer
Story by Sam Calhoun
The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in Watauga County this week is $2.94, a marked increase from the average of $2.86 during the week of April 19. Before April 19, gas prices surged more than 60 cents in two months.
Refinery problems and strong demand are the two main reasons cited for the increase, according to a recent Lundberg survey.
According to the Federal Energy Information Administration (FEIA), the recent surge in prices is because of higher crude oil prices, unplanned refinery outages, increased demand for gasoline and low levels of gasoline imports from Europe. Last month, FEIA projected that the rate of increase would slow during May, but so far, it hasn’t happened.
As of Tuesday, the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in the nation was $3.054 and the average price in North Carolina was $2.910, according to GasBuddy.com. Also on Tuesday, the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline on the East Coast was $2.958 in comparison to an average price of $3.373 on the West Coast, according to FEIA.
According to GasBuddy.com, one week ago the national average was $3.001, one month ago it was $2.804 one year ago it was $2.885.
AAA Carolinas has yet to project gas prices for the upcoming Memorial Day holiday and summer travel, but a representative said that AAA has noticed gas prices leveling off and the organization expects some degree of stabilization. However, energy analysts from around the country tend to think otherwise. In a May 7 special report from CNN, Chicago analyst Phil Flynn and New York energy analyst John Kilduff both projected that gas prices will be above $4 per gallon by the end of this summer.