NEW YORK (AP) - The recent surge in oil prices is forcing sharp increases in gasoline and other fuels that could cascade throughout the U.S. economy for months to come.
Pump prices, which are already the highest ever for early March, jumped another 4 cents Thursday. The national average is $3.43 per gallon, according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service.
Airlines, shipping companies and gas station owners were bracing for fuel prices to rise this year, though not this fast. Prices shot up sooner than expected as unrest in the Middle East and Northern Africa brought concerns that supplies could be disrupted from a region that exports a quarter of the world's oil.
The price of oil has risen 21 percent since Feb. 15, when Libyan protestors began clashing with the government. Libya controls the largest oil reserves in Africa. The U.S. imports only a tiny amount of oil from Libya, but it's still affected by the spike in oil.
Americans are now paying 29 cents more for a gallon of gas than when the Libyan crisis started, an increase of about 10 percent. That means an extra $108 million a day goes towards gas instead of other discretionary purchases.
Consumers will feel the pinch beyond the gas pump. Food merchants, airlines, shipping companies and other businesses will likely try to pass along higher costs.
Retail consultant John Haber said online florists, pizza delivery companies, trash collectors, cruise lines and taxi drivers raised rates in 2008 as gasoline and diesel jumped above $4 per gallon. The rise in oil this year "is going to trigger the exact same type of behavior," said Haber, a partner at NPI. Diesel fuel, used by truckers, railroads and cruise ships, is up to $3.78 per gallon.
Already, the impact can be seen at the grocery store, where consumers buy lettuce, onions, strawberries, avocados, eggplant, and other produce shipped from Mexico and California, Haber said.