MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US gasoline prices have not yet reached the 1980/1981 record

The average price of regular gasoline has reached a new record in United States but adjusted to inflation and linked to the GDP, the bill is still lower than that of 1981, according to the US Energy Information agency, EIA.

The average gasoline price at the pump this week soared to 3.218 US dollars per gallon (3.78 liters) reveals the weekly EIA report. "Gasoline prices are high and will continue during most of the boreal summer, but they are still not as high to have the impact they did have on households and the US economy in March 1981". In real terms, adjusted for inflation, and calculated in May 2007 dollars the prices of gasoline of that year would have reached 3.292 US dollars per gallon. Furthermore vehicles nowadays consume less fuel than 16 years ago, and the real cost of gasoline per kilometer was then in 1981 "significantly superior". Another way to gauge the real cost of gasoline is linking the total cost of gasoline to the country's GDP. "Gasoline costs in spite of the current high values, represent less than 3% of GDP, against 4.6% in 1980 and 1981", points out the EIA: However record gasoline prices are expected to continue until at least June because of continuing production problems at U.S. refineries and low imports, said the head of the EIA. Guy Caruso told the Wall Street Journal that U.S. retail gasoline prices -- which this week hit an average price of $3.22 a gallon, an all-time high -- haven't peaked. He cited continuing problems in Nigeria, a source of easier-to-refine grades of oil for world markets, as well as that nation's need to import refined products such as gasoline and diesel for its own use. "I am very hesitant to say we've reached the peak," said Caruso. Prices are expected to ease once refinery capacity returns and higher prices draw imports from other parts of the world. At a separate energy gathering, US Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said "We seem to be recovering, and hopefully we'll see mitigation of concern soon." Mr. Caruso said that despite the problems, "if everything goes right...we are expecting things should improve in June