Analyst: Price Of Gas To Rise 15 Cents Over Next Week...Then Higher
DETROIT (WWJ) - Everyone knew it probably couldn't last...and it didn't.
Experts say the price of gas is expected to rise about 15 cents a gallon over the next week in Michigan from its current average of $2.32.
"And we could see another 15 to 30 cents over the next month," Analyst Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy.com told WWJ Newsradio 950. "So, buckle up; it's not over yet."
DeHann said the rise is due in part to cold weather-related shutdowns at two refineries and an explosion at a third refinery outside of Los Angeles.
Also, DeHann said, the United Steelworkers Union strike that began Feb. 1 exacerbates operations at 12 refineries where they've imposed 'work stoppages' in California, Texas, Louisiana, Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio.
Meantime, he said, refineries are also starting to switch over to the pricier government-mandated, less-polluting summer blend.
"This is the time of year — over the next few weeks, the next month or two — that we are actually going to be phasing in a slightly cleaner version ever few weeks, with the ultimate destination that stringent summer gasoline will show up at pumps no later than June one," DeHann said.
DeHaan expects gas to rise a few cents next week as well and said it probably won't go back down again until around Memorial Day.
The is a shred of good news, however: Even as the price of gas creeps up, DeHaan said, it should remain at least 80 cents cheaper than it was last summer.
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