IMO, not this year. The price of gas correlates strongly (far more than linearly) with the economy -- I can explain in more detail face-to-face, but suffice it to say that gas is a commodity with limited supply and relatively inelastic demand, so prices spike sharply when demand exceeds easy supply. A difference of only a few percent in demand can make a massive difference in price. But until the economy recovers, demand should stay soft.
So putting that together with my economic expectations: I think it's unlikely that prices will spike again this summer, because while I think it's likely that the economy will have bottomed out by then, I don't expect things to have rebounded much. *Next* summer, though, it's possible that we could see a return to high prices (and it would probably be a good economic sign if so)...
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Re: Plug-in hybrids
Date: 2009-04-14 03:06 am (UTC)So putting that together with my economic expectations: I think it's unlikely that prices will spike again this summer, because while I think it's likely that the economy will have bottomed out by then, I don't expect things to have rebounded much. *Next* summer, though, it's possible that we could see a return to high prices (and it would probably be a good economic sign if so)...