Oil Surges Record $25/Barrel

(NEWSER) - The price of crude oil slid briefly under $100 a barrel today for the first time in 5 months, Reuters reports. The development came even as Hurricane Ike bore down on the Texas coast and its many refineries; investors apparently think the slowing world economy will continue to drive down demand. After trading at $99.99, the price ticked back up to $100.27. More»

With home heating oil prices rising, natural gas looks like a better deal

(NEWSER) - Northeasterners expecting the price of heating oil to hit $4.35 a gallon are creating an avalanche of new business for heating and cooling contractors as they increasingly look to convert from oil heat to natural gas, reports the Wall Street Journal. A conversion to natural gas heat can cost up to $8,000, but can pay for itself in 4 to 6 years—and contractors are reporting months-long backlogs. More»

High supply, falling demand will ease prices, say experts

(NEWSER) - Gas prices are holding steady at $3.92 a gallon, and that could be on the verge of coming down, reports USA Today . With a key benchmark falling to a two-month low yesterday and growing signs of a global economic slowdown, experts think pump prices will fall short of the most dire predictions , as well as short of last year's $3.99 high and the all-time record of $4.11 set in 2008. Already in pricier markets, such as Chicago and Los Angeles, prices have dropped as much as 20 cents per gallon. More»

With crude oil so expensive, they can't make money

(NEWSER) - Add one more victim to the soaring price of petroleum—refineries. Yes, despite gas prices rising another 6% in February, refineries in the US Northeast are shutting down because they're losing money, reports Wall Street Journal . And with Philadelphia-based Sunoco set to close the largest refinery in the region in July, expect gas prices to keep going higher. "Our Northeast refining business has lost nearly a billion dollars in the past three years, and those losses have threatened Sunoco's very existence as a company," said a Sunoco spokesman. More»

Sure, policy affects things ... eventually

(NEWSER) - As gas prices rise, President Obama's approval rating falls , which makes sense, because those painful numbers at the pump are all his fault, right? Wrong, say oil experts and economists. The Washington Post breaks down their arguments:

• Policy: It definitely affects things, but it takes a long time for that to happen. Cars can take a decade to turn over, for instance, so tightening fuel efficiency rules doesn't kick in immediately. One expert notes that legislation George W. Bush signed in 2007 is helping stop the "current situation from getting worse."