CRUDE AWAKENING RECORD OIL PRICES HIT GAS STATION.Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer After weeks of relative calm, gasoline gasoline or petrol, light, volatile mixture of hydrocarbons for use in the internal-combustion engine and as an organic solvent, obtained primarily by fractional distillation and "cracking" of petroleum, but also obtained from natural gas, by prices shot upward Friday, fueled by hurricane winds and portending coming increases that could total more than 5 cents a gallon. A series of four Florida hurricanes The List of Florida hurricanes encompasses 470 tropical or subtropical cyclones that affected the state of Florida. More storms hit Florida than any other U.S. state, and since 1851 only eighteen hurricane seasons passed without a storm impacting the state. , troubles in the Middle East and rumblings of unrest in Nigeria pushed the price of crude oil to a record $50.12 a barrel on Friday. The high price has brought worries to sources ranging from the International Monetary Fund, to the Group of 24 developing nations, to average drivers in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . Doug McIntyre Doug McIntyre (born November 11, 1957) is the morning (5AM-9AM) host on Los Angeles, California talk radio station KABC 790 AM. After a four-year run hosting their overnight show "Red Eye Radio," McIntyre was selected to inherit the "morning drive" position when veteran host Ken , senior analyst with the federal Energy Information Administration, says the prices will keep rising for several weeks. During oil's earlier run-ups this summer, he said, motorists cut their driving, dropping demand and providing insulation against climbs at the pump. ``Suddenly, we've gone from a very comfortable gasoline situation to one that's back to normal or even below normal,'' McIntyre said. ``Gasoline is now reflecting crude oil prices.'' The steady climb in crude prices caused representatives of the Group of Seven - Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. - and Russia to say Friday they see a threat to global prosperity if producers don't increase supplies. While pump prices lagged for a while, they caught up by week's end, and the Automobile Club of Southern California The Automobile Club of Southern California was founded December 13, 1900 in Los Angeles as one of the nation's first motor clubs dedicated to improving roads, proposing traffic laws and improvement of overall driving conditions. reported Friday that prices hit $2.151 per gallon, nearly a 4-cent increase overnight. Diesel prices felt the same pressure, rising to $2.373 on Friday, up nearly 11 cents in the last month and a staggering 57 cents over a year ago. ``Can you believe this?'' asked Azniv Kbjian, a La Crescenta homemaker watching the rapidly increasing readout (1) A small display device that typically shows only a few digits or a couple of lines of data. (2) Any display screen or panel. on the pump Friday as she filled her Chevrolet Suburban This article is about a type of vehicle. For other uses, see Suburb. The Chevrolet Suburban is a large sport utility vehicle from Chevrolet. It is one of the longest-lived automobile nameplates in the United States, dating from 1935 and is likely to be produced . ``Monday, it was $30. Yesterday, $20. Now, I still need $40 worth just to fill up.'' While drivers dodged the higher prices for a time by hitting the road less, Auto Club spokeswoman Carol Thorp said they cannot avoid them any longer. Even if crude prices moderate, it will take time for that to translate into the retail gasoline market. ``For a while, we still had lower prices because the gas we were pumping was bought at the lower prices,'' she said. ``Now, the higher prices are coming through, so we'll probably see this for a few more weeks before they come down.'' And although Elizabeth Standard, a Toluca Lake computer programmer, gets decent fuel economy in her 1999 Honda CR-V
The Honda CR-V is a compact crossover SUV manufactured by the Japanese automaker Honda since 1996. , higher prices add up to more than just an annoyance. While she doesn't mind personally paying a bit more at the pump, she said she knew she'd see the increased costs crop up again elsewhere. ``It hits everyone in the pocketbook,'' she said. ``Higher gas prices mean higher transportation costs, which mean higher prices for goods. It forces the cost of living up, which is high enough ... already.'' Brent Hopkins, (818) 713-3738 brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo, chart Photo: (color) Elizabeth Standard, a Toluca Lake computer programmer, watches the total roll up as she fills her 1999 Honda CR-V. She said higher fuel costs hurt across the board as all sectors of the economy cope with them. John McCoy/Staff Photographer Chart: PUMPING UP Source: Auto Club of Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, Daily News |
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