Gas prices on the rise during holiday season
- posted: 04 Dec. 2007
- scrollnews@byui.edu
Driving anywhere for the holidays?
As if college life isn’t expensive enough, holiday travel might pick at the pocketbook this year as oil prices continue to rise to more than $97 per barrel Dec. 3.
According to the Nov. 28 AAA report, one gallon of regular-grade gasoline costs 85 cents more than it did last year, and experts predict the cost might rise to more than $4 per gallon.
Courtney Fillmore, a junior studying elementary education, resorted to other means than driving to get to her family for Christmas.
“I’m taking Amtrak all the way from Salt Lake to Iowa,” Fillmore said.
Though it will take her 29 hours and $100 to reach home, Fillmore is not complaining.
“It sure beats driving 22 hours, and gas is too expensive,” she said, adding that when driving home by car, she forks out $170 both ways.
Gas prices began rising in 2005 and oil prices doubled during that year.Hurricane Katrina cut the American oil supply by 25 percent.
One reason for the rise in gas prices is that the demand for oil is greater than it has ever been before, said Spencer Hewlett, CFO of Maverik.
“China is increasing their thirst for crude oil and then for refined products such as gasoline and diesel,” Hewlett said.
Hewlett also attributes the price increase to unrest in the Middle East.
“[Gas prices] had dropped [from earlier this year], but then it went up because of political unrest in the Middle East with Iraq and Iran and all of those Palestinian countries that have such an abundance of oil,” he said.
Gas prices will continue to rise, said Dave Carlson, AAA Idaho Public Affairs Director, in a recent press release.
“Gas prices are rising to catch up with crude oil prices. All of this is occurring against a backdrop of tight oil supplies, a weak dollar and possible U.N. sanctions against Iran,” Carlson said.
As prices increase, retailers struggle to stay in business. When oil prices are high, most gas retailers don’t make any money off the gasoline, Hewlett said.
“People see the cost of gasoline at $3 a gallon. What they don’t take into account is that more people will pay with credit cards, and credit cards take six cents a gallon. Some retailers aren’t even making six cents a gallon,” Hewlett said.
Retailers like Maverik are forced to lower their prices just to compete with prices offered by big name stores like Smith’s Market and Costco Wholesale.
“We make it by getting people inside the store,” Hewlett said. 
