David Murrell, an economics professor at University of New Brunswick, said last Thursday (May 29, 2008), “I think there is a general idea that gasoline and oil prices are going to remain high. People are staying away from SUVs and larger cars and they’re buying smaller cars. The other thing they are demanding now is better technology such as hybrid cars.”
From regular to premium, the prices hit 132.7 per liter, 136 per liter, and 139 per liter, respectively, with approximately an average rise of 3.8 cents per liter from the previous week. Diesel rose to 154.6 per liter. That does not even include a delivery charge of two cents per liter gas retailers can add to their pump price.
Automakers are already shifting their production away from the internal combustion engine and the highway landscape could be very different in 15 years as consumers make more economical car decisions. Some may be willing to bite the bullet for now, but what happens when it costs upwards of $200 to fill a tank? Current owners of SUV’s or Humvees are already noticing $100 a tank when they go to the pumps and that is likely to climb fast in the coming year.