The highest gasoline prices in history appear to be just down the road. Dwindling supplies in the face of increased demand threaten to push pump prices over the national record set last mid-March, when markets were shaken by the prospects of a war with Iraq.
On Thursday, the markets "went ballistic," says Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service in Lakewood, N.J. That means the highest pump prices ever seen are just a few days away.
The futures price in New York jumped Thursday by more than 9.5 cents, the biggest move since 1991, while cash market increases of 10 to 15 cents were common across the country, Kloza said. The wholesale price in California is already at a record. ...