Chief Oil Analyst

California motorists bludgeoned by the nation's second highest retail gasoline prices may finally see some relief in the coming days. That's because the price for the nation's most expensive raw or unfinished gasoline, known as CARBOB, has been plumetting from its February highs, according to Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service in New Jersey. CARBOB is an acronym for a fairly ridiculous mouthful: California Reformulated Gasoline Blendstock for Oxygenate Blending.

California motorists bludgeoned by the nation's second highest retail gasoline prices may finally see some relief in the coming days. That's because the price for the nation's most expensive raw or unfinished gasoline, known as CARBOB, has been plumetting from its February highs, according to Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service in New Jersey. CARBOB is an acronym for a fairly ridiculous mouthful: California Reformulated Gasoline Blendstock for Oxygenate Blending.

California gasoline prices may soon head down to the $3.50-to-$3.75-a-gallon range, according to a leading forecaster of gas costs. "The rest of the country may see brief paroxysms of price rises over the next couple of weeks, but California should be headed sharply lower, and soon," said Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service. Retail gasoline prices in California had already declined in the last few days. The state's average fell to $4.253 a gallon Thursday, down 2 cents in the last week, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report, which uses data from service stations.

American motorists have seen the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline rise above $3.50 a gallon on just three occasions, but it has never happened this early in the year. Analysts say it's likely a sign that pain at the pump will rise to some of the highest levels ever seen later this year. In 2008, average gasoline prices had hit inflation-adjusted records nationally and in California by the summer, but they didn't climb above $3.50 a gallon across the U.S. that year until April 21, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report.

California drivers, long a symbol of America's love affair with cars, are enamored with saving fuel these days, so much so that they're setting the national standard for burning less gasoline. In the first six months of this year, Californians used nearly 7.3 billion gallons of gasoline, down 1.7% from the same period last year and off 3.5% from the first half of 2002. "In California, the freeways are so crowded that it's probably not a noticeable difference, but it's real and it's important," said Michael Sivak, a research professor at the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute.

Flying J Inc. has agreed to sell its 66,000-barrel-a-day Bakersfield refinery to Paramount Petroleum Corp., a division of Alon USA Energy Inc., if that firm is the successful bidder in an upcoming bankruptcy auction. Flying J, based in Ogden, Utah, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2008 after oil prices tumbled from record-high levels and credit markets dried up. Since then, the refinery operated by subsidiary Big West of California has struggled to keep operating and to maintain a regular supply of crude for processing.

Motorists can expect gasoline prices to drift slightly lower over the rest of the summer, but most of the declines are over, analysts said, as the average for a gallon of regular in California reached $3.794 and stood at $3.579 nationally. The price averages are calculated by the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration, which uses a telephone survey of gas stations across the U.S. California's average price fell 4.5 cents a gallon in the last week, according to the weekly survey.

Gasoline prices are at an all-time high for the week following Labor Day and the end of the traditional summer driving season. The average price of regular gasoline in California was $3.946 a gallon Friday, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report. That was an increase from $3.888 a gallon a week earlier, and it was 91 cents a gallon higher than the price a year earlier. The latest average gasoline prices in the state topped the previous post-Labor Day high of $3.859 a gallon in September 2008.

Get ready to pay $4 a gallon or more for gasoline this spring, with possible records close to $5 over the Memorial Day weekend, analysts said. "Motorists who drive a SUV may want to consider calling their banking institution and obtain a credit-limit increase so they can afford this summer's fuel expenses," quipped Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com. Look for a springtime U.S. average of $4.05 for a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline, said Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service.

Surging oil prices generally lead to soaring costs at the pump for retail gasoline. That hasn't happened with the recent jump in the price of crude, but it could soon. Crude oil for January delivery climbed 79 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $88.81 a barrel Monday on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Analysts said the rise was unusual for this time of year and blamed it on a spate of refinery outages. But over the last week in California the average price at the pump fell slightly, by 0.3 cent to $3.247 a gallon.

Get ready to pay $4 a gallon or more for gasoline this spring, with possible records close to $5 over the Memorial Day weekend, analysts said. "Motorists who drive a SUV may want to consider calling their banking institution and obtain a credit-limit increase so they can afford this summer's fuel expenses," quipped Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com. Look for a springtime U.S. average of $4.05 for a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline, said Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service.

Maybe you'll want to start salting away money for 2012 fuel costs now. Get ready to see $4-a-gallon gasoline in various parts of the U.S. sometime this spring, according to one prediction. Another prediction says that some of the nation's biggest cities -- such as Chicago, Los Angeles and New York -- will see record Memorial Day averages of $4.55 to $4.95 for a gallon of regular gasoline. The predictions come from two sources. One is the Oil Price Information Service in New Jersey, which provides the daily averages for the AAA Fuel Gauge Report, using retail receipts from more than 100,000 retail outlets across the U.S. The other is the annual price outlook from GasBuddy.com, where 300,000 to 400,000 member motorists a day report and post online and through phone apps the highest and lowest local prices they see. There are more than 250 price-posting GasBuddy websites devoted to various towns and cities across the U.S. and Canada.

California drivers, long a symbol of America's love affair with cars, are enamored with saving fuel these days, so much so that they're setting the national standard for burning less gasoline. In the first six months of this year, Californians used nearly 7.3 billion gallons of gasoline, down 1.7% from the same period last year and off 3.5% from the first half of 2002. "In California, the freeways are so crowded that it's probably not a noticeable difference, but it's real and it's important," said Michael Sivak, a research professor at the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute.

Gasoline prices are at an all-time high for the week following Labor Day and the end of the traditional summer driving season. The average price of regular gasoline in California was $3.946 a gallon Friday, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report. That was an increase from $3.888 a gallon a week earlier, and it was 91 cents a gallon higher than the price a year earlier. The latest average gasoline prices in the state topped the previous post-Labor Day high of $3.859 a gallon in September 2008.

Global oil prices were roiled by news of the rebel advance into the Libyan capital of Tripoli and the prospect that oil would be flowing from that country again. But petroleum industry experts warned that it could take more than a year for Libya to pump oil at pre-war levels, dampening the prospects for sharply cheaper gasoline prices in the near future. Prices at the pump could fall in the near future, but that would largely be due to the weak economy and the end of the summer driving season, not a fast rebound of Libyan exports, said David Kirsch, director of market intelligence at PFC Energy, a consulting firm.

With stock portfolios in shock because of Wall Street's gyrations, consumers have at least one thing to look forward to: The collapse in oil prices happening in near-tandem with the stock market blowout means that motorists should see pump prices drop as much as 50 cents a gallon over the next several weeks, energy experts said. While that might sound like great economic news, the underlying reasons are anything but. Oil prices have fallen on expectations that the world's economies are headed for a rough patch, which would reduce demand not only for oil and gasoline but also for employees and for things that businesses make and sell.

Oil climbed slightly higher in commodities trading Monday as the Energy Department reported that retail gasoline prices increased by about a nickel nationally and in California from a week ago. The average retail price of regular gasoline rose 4.9 cents nationally to $2.751 a gallon Monday. California saw a similar 4.7-cent gain to $3.046 a gallon, according to the Energy Department's weekly survey of filling stations. Prices traditionally rise in the month of March, said Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service in Wall, N.J. Kloza predicted that gasoline prices would top out this month at about $3 a gallon nationally and $3.25 in California.

Retail gasoline prices dropped nationally over the last week and crude prices fell on Monday because of concerns that the European debt crisis is spreading and will dampen demand for energy products. A strong U.S. dollar also weakened investor interest in putting money in oil, analysts said. The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S. fell three tenths of a cent to $2.725, according to the Energy Department's weekly survey of filling stations. In California, an average gallon of regular gasoline rose 4.4 cents to $3.068, the Energy Department said.

Retail gasoline prices were mostly stable over the last week, and oil failed to gain much of a boost from an apparent bipartisan deal to raise the U.S. debt ceiling. The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in California barely budged over the last week, down 0.7 of a cent to $3.811, according to the Energy Department's weekly survey of service stations. Over the last month, the California average has varied by less than 2 cents a gallon, up from $3.794 on July 4. Nationally, the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline rose 1.2 cents in the last week to $3.711, the Energy Department said.

Motorists can expect gasoline prices to drift slightly lower over the rest of the summer, but most of the declines are over, analysts said, as the average for a gallon of regular in California reached $3.794 and stood at $3.579 nationally. The price averages are calculated by the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration, which uses a telephone survey of gas stations across the U.S. California's average price fell 4.5 cents a gallon in the last week, according to the weekly survey.