Demand fuels gas price hike.

[xcel]

Average area prices are a nickel higher than Thursday due to holiday travel, active hurricane forecast.

Eric Morath - The Detroit News - April 7, 2007

The British sailors are free, but local gas prices are going up again. The latest factors being blamed are rising demand, the Easter Bunny and a pessimistic hurricane forecast.

The average gas price in Metro Detroit rose to $2.70 a gallon Friday, up a nickel from Thursday, AAA Michigan reported. Several stations were charging $2.85 or more.

Earlier in the week, Iran's release of the British sailors that had been held hostage caused wholesale prices to dip and helped keep pump prices stable.

Now prices are rising again on reports that, even though it's only April, U.S. demand for gas is nearing levels typically seen in midsummer and this year's hurricane season is expected to be active. Hurricane damage to Gulf Coast refineries would disrupt the supply of oil nationwide.

Short-term, Easter holiday and spring break travel are driving up gasoline demand, assuring that prices will remain high through at least this weekend.

The Oil Price Information Service said gas prices are likely to hit their peak for the first half of the year in the next week or two and then remain near that level into May and June.

Among factors that could cause prices to dip are continued relative calm in the Middle East and refineries reaching full production to meet summer demand, said Mark Griffin, president of the Michigan Petroleum Association. But, of course, any number of other factors could push prices up.

"You're going to see wild fluctuations because it's an unstable commodity. As long as that's the case, we'll have unstable prices."

[Pravus Prime]

$2.75 was the cheapest I saw today. $2.79 was the usual price. Glad I still have 300 miles before I need fuel again.

[TonyPSchaefer]

Keeping America competitive requires affordable energy. And here we have a serious problem: America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable part of the world. The best way to break this addiction is through technology. Since 2001, we have spent nearly $10 billion to develop cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable alternative energy sources -- and we are on the threshold of incredible advances.
. . .
Breakthroughs on this and other new technologies will help us reach another great goal: to replace more than 75 percent of our oil imports from the Middle East by 2025. By applying the talent and technology of America, this country can dramatically improve our environment, move beyond a petroleum-based economy, and make our dependence on Middle Eastern oil a thing of the past.

- President George W Bush, State of the Union Address; January 31, 2006

I just wish we didn't have to wait so long.

[tigerhonaker]

Franklin, TN. 87 Octane $2.69 as of Sunday April 8, 2007