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Dollar's mileage is down

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By RICHARD MULLINS

rmullins@tampatrib.com

Published: October 27, 2009

TAMPA - Gas prices are rising in Florida, following the path of crude oil prices upward during the past month.

Prices in Florida are averaging $2.70 a gallon for regular unleaded, up from $2.49 a month ago, according to AAA.

According to the national Lundberg Survey of prices released Sunday, the average price of regular gasoline in the United States has jumped 17.8 cents, to $2.66, in two weeks. It's the first increase in the national retail price of gas since late July.

In Tampa, the lowest price was $2.54 on Monday, according to TampaGasPrices.com, which solicits the public to send in prices seen at local stations. The average, according AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report, is $2.67, up 29 cents from a month ago.

Prices are rising despite weak consumer demand and ample supplies, according to AAA.

Crude oil has surged 25 percent in the past month and posted its highest weekly closing price of the year, $80.50 a barrel, driven in part by a weaker U.S. dollar that's sending speculators to the commodities market, according to AAA. The run-up hit a wall Monday, however, as crude prices fell 2 percent, or $1.82, to settle at $78.68 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Last year's record of $147 a barrel for crude also was due in part to the weak dollar, but there were other reasons for buying oil. Petroleum companies were nearing their peak production levels, and traders fretted about the growing energy appetites of China and other developing countries.

This year, there is no immediate danger of an oil shortage, with the United States and other countries mired in recession.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this story. Reporter Richard Mullins can be reached at (813) 259-7919.

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