Stories related to: gas prices

The Toyota Prius is a now 1 million units strong, and the landmark gas-electric hybrid, introduced in 1997, is poised to keep growing, the AP reports. Toyota said today it expects to be selling a million a year by sometime after 2010; what’s more, the company claims 4.5 million tons of harmful gases have been taken out of the air since its debut. More »

It's here. Alaska has the painful distinction of becoming the first state where gas is selling for an average of $4 a gallon, Reuters reports. The average for the rest of the US is hovering at $3.76, but Connecticut, California, New York, and Illinois could all join Alaska in the $4-a-gallon club after Memorial Day weekend. More »

A withdrawal from Iraq next year would be a disaster that would likely trigger another 9/11, President Bush warns in an interview with Politico. "It would shake everybody's nerves. It would embolden the very same people we're trying to defeat" and "would eventually lead to another attack on the United States," he said. More »

With gas at nearly $4 a gallon, thousands of American gas station owners foresee trouble—because their old-time pumps can't price gas at higher than $3.99. "In small towns, where you don't have the volume, there's no way you can afford to pay for the replacements for these old pumps," one owner told the AP. "It's just not economically feasible." More »

Sure, gas prices are unreasonable and the economy is hurting, but, the Los Angeles Times reports, at least now the infamous traffic isn't so bad. Hard data shows that traffic may be thinning out along LA’s freeways; accidents and commute times are also falling. Talking with local drivers, the Times got plenty of anecdotal evidence to support the theory. More »

The soaring price of gas is driving people across America out of their cars and onto mass transit, the New York Times reports. Buses and trains are up 5% or more in cities like Boston and New York, where mass transit is already a popular alternative, but the biggest leap in rider numbers—10-15%— has been in cities in the South and West where car culture is strongest. More »

As crude hit $125 a barrel today, one OPEC member said the cartel may boost oil production to relieve prices, the New York Times reports. The move would conflict with OPEC's public stand that speculators, not oil supplies, have been keeping prices high. “We would consider among other options the possibility of increasing output as a way to ensure market stability,” Libya's top oil official said. More »

As gas prices skyrocket—and oil company profits soar along with them—the chief US oil lobby has launched a massive campaign to improve its public image, the Washington Post reports. The American Petroleum Institute is spending millions on newspaper ads, a traveling museum, and tours for bloggers, to counter rising hostility among consumers and moves in Congress to punish the industry. More »

Oil climbed over $125 a barrel today, just ahead of the US driving season and propelled by investors jumping at a weaker dollar, the AP reports. Light, sweet crude for June rose to $125.98 on the New York Mercantile Exchange today, later dropping to $124.86 in Europe. More »

It’s common knowledge that driving a little slower makes more efficient use of gas. And with fuel prices sky-high, some drivers are actually throttling back in hopes of feeling less pain at the pump, the AP reports. Vacation drivers and truckers alike are heeding experts’ advice that cars are most efficient between 30 and 60 mph, and become increasingly inefficient over 65 mph. More »

A “super-spike” could push oil beyond $150 a barrel by October, the highest it been in more than 135 years, experts say. That would drive the price at the pump past $4.50 a gallon and trim US economic output 3.3% in the 2 years following, reports the Wall Street Journal. Crude sold for a record $121.84 yesterday, up 96% from a year ago. More »

Even rising gas prices couldn’t dent Disney’s second-quarter earnings. The company’s theme park earnings climbed 33%, helping push its overall net up 22% from a year ago, reports the Wall Street Journal. Disney also recorded a 61% jump in earnings from its movie arm and a 14% bump from its media networks. Only consumer product earnings declined, about 14%. More »

Barack Obama appears to be recovering—mostly—from the furor over his former pastor's incendiary remarks, according to the latest CBS News / New York Times poll. His lead over Hillary Clinton has increased from 8 points to 12 points—50% to 38%—among Democratic primary voters, who also approve of how he handled the flap over comments by Rev. Jeremiah Wright, 68% to 22%. There's still some negative residue, however. More »

The gas tax holiday backed by Hillary Clinton and John McCain will be DOA in the House, lawmakers have warned, reports the Hill . The measure has been left off House energy proposals that could be tacked onto the Iraq spending bill because "there’s no reason to believe that any moratorium on the gas tax would be passed on to the consumer," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. More »

Economists and a leading House Democrat are blasting the gas-tax cut proposed by both John McCain and Hillary Clinton, the Washington Post reports. Economists say most of the savings would flow right to the oil companies' bottom line, rather than into voters’ pockets. That's because the tax vacation would raise demand at a time that demand is already high—which would lead directly to even higher prices.  More »

President Bush conceded that “it’s a very slow economy” one day ahead of possibly ugly GDP numbers, the New York Times reports, and said Congress is dragging its feet on gas prices, the mortgage crisis, farm subsidies and student loans. The Democratic-controlled legislature should be “sending me sensible and effective bills,” he said, not ones "that simply look like political statements.” More »

Oil and gas prices could double in the next four years, analysts say—with $7 per gallon possible by 2012. "It is increasingly clear that the outlook for oil supply signals a period of unprecedented scarcity," an analyst at investment bank CBIC tells MarketWatch. More »

The Bay Area is used to being on the cutting edge, but becoming the first to pay $4 for a gallon of gas is a milestone San Francisco could do without, the Chronicle reports. Prices are expected to nudge past the mark next week—but many Bay Area residents have already fled their cars to dodge ever-growing fuel costs. More »

US retail purchases rose in March by 0.2%, pushed up by higher prices at the gasoline pump, Bloomberg reports. Purchases excluding gasoline were unchanged, and consumer spending is still on its way down, causing investors to think that the Federal Reserve might again look to cut interest rates—despite worries about rising inflation. More »

Retailers’ same-store sales were flat in March, due in part to an early Easter, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Thomson Financial Same Store Sales Index, projected to sink 0.1%, fell 1.1%, excluding Wal-Mart. Shoppers weren’t ready to buy for spring on the heels of winter, store closings for the holiday reduced sales, and consumer sentiment his a five-year low amid still-rising fuel prices. More »