(Calgary) Gasoline prices in Canada should remain at record highs despite the significant drop in crude oil prices in the middle of the week.
Posted at 2:25 p.m.
Canada’s average retail fuel price climbed Thursday morning to nearly $1.87 a liter from around $1.85 on Wednesday and $1.66 last week, according to the gasoline price tracker website. GasBuddy.com.
The gains came despite the first major decline in the price of crude since the start of the war in Ukraine, which boosted demand. On Wednesday, West Texas Intermediate’s benchmark price per barrel closed at US$110.36, down nearly 11% from the previous day.
WTI was still hovering around US$110 late Thursday morning.
Analyst Patrick de Haan of GasBuddy.com said while Wednesday’s crude decline was good news for drivers, retail pump prices are days behind oil prices.
This means, he claimed on Twitter, that gasoline prices will continue to rise for the immediate future.
“Stations haven’t fully passed on the rise, so it’s not yet translating into lower prices, it’s translating into slower increases,” de Haan said. “The stations will not need to increase as much. »
Data from Natural Resources Canada shows the national daily average retail price of gasoline was $1.87 per liter on Wednesday. In parts of British Columbia, including Vancouver, prices topped the $2.00 per liter mark this week.
GasWizard.ca had predicted that Montreal and Quebec would cross the $2 per liter threshold on Thursday, while many places in Ontario could see gasoline prices hit $1.90 per litre.