On May 4, the price of gas ended the week at $3.012 cents per gallon. This price is just the latest in the surge of high gas prices and in fact, it was a 2.1 cent increase from just the day before. This increase of the per gallon price occurred despite the fact that June delivery of light, sweet crude oil dropped $1.26 per barrel to end the day at $61.93. Presently, high gas prices in the United States are being attributed to several factors. The first factor includes the shut down of some domestic refineries in order for maintenance and other improvements to take place. A limited supply of gasoline imports remains the second factor. This limited supply of gasoline is due to the switching from gasoline to the diesel productions at several European refineries and refinery interruptions and other problems have led to a 12% drop in Venezuelan imports.

Investors and consumers alike are worried about the sudden increase in gas prices since summer, the peak season for gas consumption, has not even begun yet. Of course, the summer pricing depends on two things; 1) the amount of gas the refineries will produce and 2) how much consumers are truly willing to spend on gas. Unfortunately, immediately following the summer months, Americans will have to wait with baited breath to see if any hurricanes strike the Gulf coast and if so, how much damage the refineries in the Gulf area receive. There is not much leeway in the industry so if the refineries experience any disruption in the chain of supply and delivery, consumers could see higher prices that top the summer gas prices.

The increase in gas prices originally affected mainly the blue-collared workers, but now industry experts are beginning to see the gas prices affect more and more white-collared workers. As a way to save gas and therefore save money, many people have chosen to stay home more, trade in their present vehicle for a more gas-efficient model and/or find a job that has a closer commute. For those that are currently jobless, the area in which many people can look for a job has diminished.

Those looking for employment have now begun to take into account the driving distance prior to applying or taking on a job. Furthermore, some experts believe that the high price of gas will further force the jobless rate to increase. The April jobless rate which was reported to be 4.5% is up from the 5-year low of 4.4% in March. While these figures indicate that the economy is a little weak and not in trouble, experts fear the price of gas will force the cost of goods to increase, thereby leaving less money for businesses to hire aggressively. This lag in hiring new employees will cause the jobless rate to increase over the summer and experts predict that it could perhaps end the year around five percent. While this may seem like a high jobless percentage, it is still low when compared to other historical jobless rates.

Consumer advocate groups have begun to urge politicians to try and force refineries to produce more gasoline; however, the ultimate decision on gasoline prices will fall on the shoulders of consumers. Consumers will have to ultimately decide how much they want to travel and if paying the price at the pump is actually worth it.