The price of a litre of gas is expected to jump 4.5 cents at midnight Wednesday to a wallet-busting 140.1 cents a litre, according to Roger McKnight of Oshawa-based En-Pro International Inc.
“That is absolutely amazing. It’s probably the biggest increase I’ve seen since Katrina when things went completely crazy. And there’s no end in sight,” McKnight said, adding that he predicted to see prices reach between 143 cents to 147 cents a litre by April.
McKnight said the predicted overnight price spike is a result of a lead Ontario supplier’s decision to increase wholesale prices by 4 cents — an estimated 4.5 cent increase at the pump with harmonized sales tax included.
The predicted jump comes at a time of unseasonably-high prices for Ontario drivers — with the predicted 140.1 cent price point about eight per cent higher than gas prices last year.
While gas price increases usually increase the spring as the driving season kicks into gear, McKnight pointed to a confluence of forces that have kept prices at a higher-than-average rate — a shortage of refining capacity in the United States, decreasing imports of oil to the U.S. and political instability in the Middle East, for example.
“All the dominoes are lined up and you’ll see what you get tomorrow morning,” he said.
Original Article
Source: Star
Author: Niamh Scallan
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