gas prices

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Oil Prices Jump $1 as Gustav Shuts Down Gulf Operations

Investors react to storm threat

(Newser) - Hurricane Gustav helped boost oil prices today by more than $1 a barrel as energy companies shut down production facilities in the storm's path, reports Reuters. US crude rose $1.54 to $117 per barrel this morning, after briefly surging to over $118 when NYMEX opened for electronic trading hours...

Gustav Could Reverse Welcome Oil Trend

Hurricane, now Category 3, projected to slam into oil platforms, refineries

(Newser) - Hurricane Gustav is on path to smash into the Gulf Coast's oil-production infrastructure, which could reverse the recent downward trend in gas prices, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. More than a quarter of oil produced in the US comes from the Gulf of Mexico, and producers have already begun evacuating...

High Gas Prices Mean Fewer Traffic Deaths

People are changing where, when, and how they drive

(Newser) - The number of traffic deaths may drop this year to their lowest since Kennedy was president—thanks in large part to higher gas prices, the AP reports. As they rose above $3.20 a gallon, fatalities plummeted 22.1% in March and 17.9% in April, a study found. The...

GM Plans New Chevy Compact
 GM Plans New Chevy Compact 
Aug 21, 2008 4:55 PM CDT

GM Plans New Chevy Compact

(Newser) - General Motors will invest $500 million to build its new compact car in the US, the Detroit News reports. The Chevrolet Cruze, expected to get about 45mpg, will go into production in 2010 in Lordstown, Ohio. The ailing automaker, once heavily reliant on SUVs, continues to alter its production line...

Wholesale Prices Rising at Fastest Pace Since 1981

High energy, motor vehicle costs pushing inflation; Fed may be forced to boost rates

(Newser) - Wholesale prices jumped 1.2% in July—more than twice the rate economists expected and  the fastest pace in 27 years, according to government data released today, the AP reports. Core prices, which exclude food and energy, rose 0.7%, the biggest since November 2006; new home construction in July...

SUV Apocalypse Nears
 SUV Apocalypse Nears
Aug 17, 2008 10:04 AM CDT

SUV Apocalypse Nears

Sales fall off as Americans opt for leaner, greener cars

(Newser) - America’s obsession with super-size cars seems to be running out of gas. The Daily Green reports on the seven signs of the SUV apocalypse:
  1. The numbers: Sales of small cars were up 11% in the first half of the year, while SUV and truck sales were down by 14%
...

Bike Sharing Debuts in DC
 Bike Sharing Debuts in DC 
Aug 15, 2008 12:11 PM CDT

Bike Sharing Debuts in DC

$40 a year gives locals access to cycles parked citywide

(Newser) - With its residents battling high fuel prices and heavy traffic, Washington, DC, has instituted a bike-sharing program: pay $40 a year, and you can borrow wheels from one of 10 stands across the city. Inspired by similar schemes abroad, SmartBike DC is using technology keep the system running smoothly, keeping...

Small Dips in Gas Prices Send Drivers Back to SUVs

Consumers viewing fuel efficiency as 'one factor' again

(Newser) - Oil prices have been falling since mid-June, and though it’s debatable whether speculators or market fundamentals drove the boom (and now possible bust), it is clear that $4 a gallon gas crimped demand. But for how long? With prices now again below that psychological threshold but still $1.19...

Airline Shares Bounce Back as Oil Prices Fall

Analyst predicts carriers could be back in the black next year

(Newser) - Airline shares rose yesterday following an analyst's prediction that the big carriers could be back in the black by next year, reports the Wall Street Journal. The stocks have been recovering since mid-July as oil prices started to slip downward and the industry's cost-cutting and revenue-boosting measures began to take...

Look to Danes for Energy Know-How
Look to Danes for Energy Know-How
OPINION
Aug 10, 2008 9:17 AM CDT

Look to Danes for Energy Know-How

Tiny nation responded to '73 crisis with bikes, wind, oil tax: Friedman

(Newser) - Hey, America, looking for a way to solve the energy crisis? Try following Denmark's lead, writes Thomas L. Friedman in the New York Times. The country has a few simple fixes that go a long way: Friedman observes half the rush-hour traffic is bicycles; wind provides 20% of the country's...

EPA Refuses to Lower Ethanol Quota

Agency denies request by Texas governor

(Newser) - The EPA refused to cut a minimum ethanol quota today, despite critics’ charges that the biofuel mandate is driving high food prices, the New York Times reports. The agency approved Congress’ quota that requires the US use 9 billion gallons of ethanol in gasoline blends this year, denying Texas Gov....

Oil Rhetoric Gets Silly
 Oil Rhetoric Gets Silly
Opinion
Aug 6, 2008 10:31 AM CDT

Oil Rhetoric Gets Silly

Promises get bigger, and policy gets dumber

(Newser) - It might as well be a mathematical formula: High gas prices + oncoming election = stupid policy, writes Ruth Marcus in the Washington Post. John McCain, once the possessor of a sensible energy plan, now screeches incessantly about outer-continental shelf drilling, as though this would instantly solve the energy crisis....

Car Sharing Rides $4 Gas to Increased Popularity

Zipcar catches on nationwide

(Newser) - With gas prices hovering around $4 a gallon, car sharing as an alternative to car ownership is finally gaining traction, reports Newsweek. Started 8 years ago, the best-known car-sharing company, Zipcar, rents communal vehicles by the hour or day. Both cost-efficient and eco-friendly, the company charges members about $10 an...

Obama: Time to Tap Oil Reserves

Democrat flips policy position, cites crisis

(Newser) - Barack Obama called for a release of some of the strategic petroleum reserve today, dubbing the current energy crisis “one of the most dangerous and urgent threats this nation has ever faced.” Campaigning in Michigan, Obama outlined his energy plan, which he says will create 5 million “...

Washington Wants You to Guzzle Gas
Washington Wants You to Guzzle Gas
Opinion
Aug 3, 2008 3:28 PM CDT

Washington Wants You to Guzzle Gas

Tax dollars should subsidize mass transit, not cars

(Newser) - As gas prices rise, Americans are driving less—and fewer dollars are flowing into the gas-tax-fueled Federal Highway Trust Fund. President Bush’s illogical response? To take money out of public transportation and put it in the highway fund—the latest bizarre example of officials intent on promoting and subsidizing...

Even Texas Is Going Electric
 Even Texas Is Going Electric
Jul 31, 2008 1:08 PM CDT

Even Texas Is Going Electric

Gas costs make 'golf carts' smart choices

(Newser) - High gas prices are forcing Americans to seriously pursue other transportation options—even in Texas, the heart of oil country. Chrysler’s Global Electric Motorcar division, which sells tiny, utilitarian vehicles, has seen dealerships triple sales. The Wall Street Journal visits a Texas family that’s embraced the cost-efficiency of...

Oil, Gas Prices Continue Slide
 Oil, Gas Prices Continue Slide
Jul 30, 2008 6:59 AM CDT

Oil, Gas Prices Continue Slide

A glimmer of hope in otherwise gloomy economy as crude prices sink

(Newser) - A dip in the price of energy is providing a welcome respite from an otherwise grim economic picture. Oil, which neared $150 a barrel earlier this month, has dropped $23, or 16%, since July 3; natural gas prices are down 33%. AAA says nationwide gas prices have dropped to $3....

China's Thirst for Gaz-Guzzlers Boosts Oil Demand

SUV sales jump 43% over last year

(Newser) - While soaring gas prices are driving Americans to buy more energy-efficient cars, Chinese consumers are opting for gas-guzzling Buicks and Hummers, reports the Washington Post. China accounts for 40% of the world's recent increase in oil demand. There were few private cars in China 15 years ago, but today there...

Phew! Gas Sinks Below $4
 Phew! Gas Sinks Below $4
Jul 26, 2008 1:04 PM CDT

Phew! Gas Sinks Below $4

Diesel down as well, but still high; ethanol hovers in the low $3 range

(Newser) - Gas prices dipped below $4 today for the first time in almost 2 months, CNN reports. A survey by AAA showed that a gallon of regular cost an average of $3.983, 2 cents lower than yesterday. The move continues a trend over roughly the last week in which prices...

LA Prof Discovers New World on Foot
 LA Prof Discovers
 New World on Foot

opinion
Jul 26, 2008 11:18 AM CDT

LA Prof Discovers New World on Foot

Gas prices forced her to walk around the neighborhood

(Newser) - Forced by high gas prices to start walking again, one Los Angeles professor discovered something new: her neighborhood. No longer wanting to drive to a park to walk her dog, Diana Wagman took it through the neighborhood, where she found reburbished homes, furniture on the curb, and—who knew—her...

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