DRIVER: OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD.
SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: IT’S THE STICKER SHOCK AT THE GAS PUMP FELT AROUND THE COUNTRY.
DRIVER: IT’S $100 AND IT’S NOT EVEN A FULL TANK.
SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: AS THE AVERAGE PRICE PER GALLON SOARS ABOVE FOUR DOLLARS FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2008. ON MONDAY – JUST FIVE CENTS SHY OF THE NATIONAL RECORD FOR REGULAR UNLEADED. THE PRICE AT THE PUMP, 62 CENTS HIGHER THAN JUST ONE MONTH AGO. FUELED BY RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE.CALIFORNIA’S AVERAGE PRICE IS 5.34 A GALLON – LEAVING SOME TO CONSIDER ALTERNATIVE MODES OF TRANSPORTATION.
ACROSS THE BOARD – PREDICTIONS ARE WE’LL SET A NEW NATIONAL RECORD IN THE COMING DAYS. GASBUDDY SAYS THE PRICE COULD BE UPWARD OF 4.25 A GALLON BY MEMORIAL DAY. AND ITS UPDATED FUEL FORECAST SHOWS WE WON’T DIP BACK BELOW FOUR DOLLARS UNTIL NOVEMBER… MEANING THE AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD WILL SPEND NEARLY 800 DOLLARS MORE ON GAS THIS YEAR THAN LAST.
WHILE THE WESTERN WORLD ECONOMICALLY SQUEEZES RUSSIA OVER ITS UKRAINE INVASION – SANCTIONS ON OIL REMAIN UNTAPPED OVER FEARS OF COLLATERAL DAMAGE. RUSSIA IS THE WORLD’S THIRD LARGEST OIL PRODUCER – ACCOUNTING FOR ROUGHLY 10% OF GLOBAL SUPPLY. AND WHILE THE U-S IMPORTS JUST A SMALL FRACTION OF OIL FROM RUSSIA, EUROPE RELIES ON RUSSIA FOR NEARLY 40% OF ITS NATURAL GAS.
FORMER REP. DONNA EDWARDS: I think there are ways to backfill so that the impact isn’t on the United States, the real question is what the impact is on Europe and whether Europeans will go along with that.
SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: BLOOMBERG REPORTS THE WHITE HOUSE IS CONSIDERING BANNING RUSSIAN OIL ON ITS OWN. WHILE HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI SAYS CONGRESS IS LOOKING INTO THE SAME. I’M SIMONE DEL ROSARIO. FROM NEW YORK IT’S JUST BUSINESS.