Oil tops $81 US, but for how long?

While oil may have broken the $80 US per barrel mark, the questionable recovery of the world economy has to be one factor that can pull oil back under.

Some consider the spark that started the last recession to exactly that; oil at a price that was no longer affordable by the consumer and industry. Are we now at a point where consumers will start to ask themselves the question again: Can I afford high energy?

Here in Newfoundland and Labrador, consumers are already dealing with gasoline and diesel prices that range better than $1.08 a litre. For consumers and independent truckers, businesses that depend on the transportation sector, again they are all going to be forced to take measures to conserve energy and try to cut losses. It is again that the Canadian dollar will show it's strength against the US dollar as the dollar reaches parity. It may be the only measure out there to absorb the shock of rising oil prices.

With five days of numbers at hand, there is enough to show increased prices again for all fuels I measure, and the prospects of high oil will also have to be noted to users of fuel out there. Just how high will oil prices go before we see another bust?

I'll be back tomorrow night with the final breakdown in the expected price increases for this week!

Regards,

George