VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Nowhere to go but up. That’s the prediction for gas prices in Canada for 2018.
According to GasBuddy’s Fuel Price Outlook for this year, September will put us at the highest we’ve paid for gas in years.
“And that of course is optimistic, because it may also mean that August and July are on track to doing the same,” says analyst Dan McTeague. “Whatever the case may be, even though oil is much cheaper than it was say back in 2012, 2013… at $65 a barrel, it’s a bit of a double-whammy for Canadians.”
He tells us local oil isn’t getting to market because of things like pipeline troubles, and that means Canada is discounting its product.
“[That] has a direct relationship on the value of the Canadian dollar, which continues to show weakness in the face of the stronger US greenback. And because we price all of our fuel in US terms, even though oil prices are heading higher for Canadians it’s a double set-back.”
McTeague says all this translates to as much as a two to three cent deficit per litre at the pumps.
In BC, you can also expect to tack on an extra 1.2 cents for every litre you buy. That’s due to a higher carbon tax, which sets in April 1st.
So enjoy the current gas prices while they last; the cheapest you’ll see will likely be this month. McTeague predicts prices will remain in the $1.35 to $1.38 range per litre until early next week in Metro Vancouver.
“Unless of course there’s a dramatic decrease in Pacific Northwest prices, but I’m not seeing that yet,” he notes.
And if you’ve noticed paying a little more this time of year than you’re normally accustomed to, McTeague says you can blame a colder winter.
“Colder winters mean higher diesel use, which means of course refineries will favour diesel over gasoline, where they can.”
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