Baseball Hall of Famer Yogi Berra said “It’s déjà vu all over again”. This famous quote originated as a result of Berra watching Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris hit back-to-back home runs on multiple occasions for the New York Yankees in the early 1960s.
Today Berra’s quote applies to the price of a gallon of gasoline.
According to the EIA, the price at the pump has recently dropped; however, the average price for a gallon for all formulations on November 28 was $3.38, compared to $2.69 two years prior. The November price is down from a Colorado high of $3.83 in mid-May. Nationally, the price topped $4.00 a gallon for three weeks in May.
While these prices are admittedly high, Coloradans are fortunate. Over the past ten years, the price of gasoline is lower in Colorado than the U.S. average about 70% of the time.
For the period 12/1/2010 to 11/30/2011, the cost for Coloradans to purchase 15 gallons of gasoline a week would have been about $2,661. For the 52 weeks prior, costs would have been $2,101; and they would have been$1,737 for the year prior to that.
For some Americans the extra cost is an annoyance. For the unemployed, those who have gone months without a meaningful pay increase, or those who are living on fixed or limited incomes, the additional $40+ per month (for gasoline) is significant. In addition higher fuel costs are indirectly causing increases in food prices, building materials, and various consumer goods and services.
While the recent decline is welcome. “It’s déjà vu all over again”. The reprieve is only temporary.
©Copyright 2011 by CBER.