Originally Posted by luvmeZ28

so not only am i wasting my gas to do this, but i have to listen to the endless amount of people that actually come up to me while im doing it and complain. they actually swear at me and they talk like i have something to do with it! and there are also the people that drive by shouting obscenities. its only been three days of this, but im already tired of it.

sorry for the rant, just felt like sharing. and remember people, the guys(like me) that work at these places are suckers just like the rest of you, and we have to pay the same, its not like we get it free, i wish! so please dont take your frustration out on the lowly clerks.

Originally Posted by .

Pricing analysts say consumers can expect even higher prices at the pump.
August 31, 2005: 11:18 AM EDT
By Grace Wong, CNN/Money staff writer


NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Consumers can expect retail gas prices to rise to $4 a gallon soon but whether they stay there depends on the long-term damage to oil facilities from Hurricane Katrina, oil and gas analysts said Wednesday.

"There's no question gas will hit $4 a gallon," Ben Brockwell, director of pricing at the Oil Price Information Service, said. "The question is how high will it go and how long will it last?"

OPIS tracks wholesale and retail oil prices and provides pricing information for AAA's daily reports on fuel prices.

Brockwell said with gasoline prices now exceeding $3 a gallon before even reaching the wholesale level, it "doesn't take a genius" to expect retail prices to hit $4 a gallon soon.

"Consumers haven't seen the worst of it yet," Brockwell said.

He expects consumers in the Southeast and Northeast to be pinched first, following the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast region.

Katrina forced operators to close more than a tenth of the country's refining capacity and a quarter of its oil production, which sent gasoline prices surging.

"With this kind of hiccup in refinery capacity, in stretched markets like California, you could see over $4 a gallon in gas," Evan Smith, an analyst at U.S. Global Investors, told CNN/Money.

While it's still too early to fully assess the damage caused by Katrina, efforts to build up inventories of crude oil, natural gas and other products like gasoline will be set back by the storm, according to Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at Global Insight.

In a research note, Behravesh laid out a worst-case scenario that puts average prices for regular unleaded gasoline at about $3.50 a gallon for the next four to six months.

"The impact on consumer spending in such a scenario would be very dramatic, cutting the growth rate by as much as 3 percent and pushing real GDP growth in the fourth quarter closer to zero," he wrote.

In a best-case scenario, he forecast retail pump prices to peak at $3 a gallon for a couple of months, but then fall back to around $2.50 by year-end.

The nationwide average price for a gallon of regular unleaded hit a fresh high of $2.619 Wednesday, according to AAA, the largest U.S. motorist organization, formerly known as the American Automobile Association.

Average gasoline prices have gained 40 percent in the last year.

Prices for crude oil are also up sharply and are currently hovering near record highs just under $70 a barrel.

Originally Posted by Donohue96M6Z28

wtf man, why do you keep on raising the prices for all of us, while you get to pay less $$ for gas, WTF is that, thats not fair, i hate people like you, you $%#@##@@#&&%$%*%

Originally Posted by SSilverSSurfer

i was watching the news and atlanta is at over $6 a gallon!!!!!!!!!! you should be happy your paying half that

Originally Posted by AaronR

Its not going to stop until we get a new President .If it was up only to 2.50 that would be outrageous,we are getting raped plain and simple and no one with the power to do anything is going to!

Originally Posted by Spazdout

no political rants, and bush caused huricane catrina as well. thats has as much weight as your arguement.

first we were blaming the middle east for the surge in gas prices. and now we are blaming the hurricane. I know supply and demand is a huge part of it. Plus the oil companies KNOW they can charge you that much, its either pay it or go no where. Another thing is the EPA will not allow any more refineries to open up. we got all the oil we need, just not enough ways to process it.

I voted for Bush, but he wasn't elected in on his economic policies, he was voted in on the war. And in 2008 im hoping we don't get ruddy, clinton, or mccain. thats not a good step in the right direction at all.

there has to be a logical idea out there that the consumers can do to make there voice be heard.