Gas Prices | featured news

Retail sales in the U.S. increased in August by the most in six months, boosted by demand for automobiles along with higher gasoline prices that left consumers with less to spend on other goods. The 0.9 percent gain followed a revised 0.6 percent advance in July that was smaller than initially reported, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. The median forecast of 84 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for an increase of 0.8 percent. Sales slowed at department stores, apparel retailers and electronics outlets.

Attaf Abu Ali, who drives a taxi van, had a hand-lettered sign on his vehicle Thursday that said: “Car for sale, with driver.” “I can’t live off of this,” Abu Ali said of his work, ticking off a list of operating expenses, the most onerous among them the rising price of diesel fuel.

Gas prices have jumped again nationwide, according to a survey published Sunday. he average price for a gallon of regular is now $3.76 -- up nearly seven cents from two weeks ago, the Lundberg Survey found.

Even as President Barack Obama considers using U.S. oil stockpiles to halt rising gasoline costs in an election year, a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday shows economic pain at the pump is not a big concern for voters.

Gas prices jumped 18 cents over the past two weeks, the biggest jump of the year, according to a survey published Sunday. The average cost of a gallon of regular is $3.69 nationwide, the Lundberg Survey found. That's nearly 8 cents higher than a year ago, but still 28 cents lower than it was in April of this year.

A surprise surge in gasoline prices is taking some of the fun out of summer. The national average for a gallon of gas at the pump has climbed to $3.67, a rise of 34 cents since July 1. An increase in crude oil prices and problems with refineries and pipelines in the West Coast and Midwest, including a fire in California, are mostly to blame.

The phenomenon is called rockets and feathers, and, industry analysts say, it's been going on for a long time. Gasoline retail prices rise four times faster than they fall after the wholesale price changes, according to a 2010 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) study.

After dipping to $3.33 a gallon, the nation's average gas price climbed 17 cents over 26 consecutive days in July.

Economists Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers write that “the debate in Washington about economic policy is phony. It’s manufactured. And it’s entirely political.” ... Turns out that there’s wide agreement that the stimulus created jobs, TARP was necessary, market factors drive gas prices, tax cuts reduce revenue, tax increases and spending cuts will have to be part of a deficit solution and more.

Consumer prices were flat in June as the cost of gasoline dropped, offering some relief for cash-strapped Americans and scope for the Federal Reserve to ease monetary policy further to help the faltering recovery.