GASOLINE PRICES ON THE RISE; PRICES COULD GO HIGHER THIS SUMMER, SAYS DEALER

Angela McFerren no longer pulls into the first service station she comes to when her fuel gauge moves toward empty. She can't afford to.

With gas prices once again inching toward the $1.40 mark, the Cape Girardeau Central High School student said she watches gas prices around town and goes to where the price is lowest, which is something new for her.

"I can only afford to put in so much at a time, so I'm having to stop more frequently, too," McFerren said.

McFerren was getting gas at Value Gas, a Texaco station on Broadway where gas on Monday was $1.36 per gallon, the lowest in the Broadway-Kingshighway area.

Karen Mathena, manager of Value Gas, said she has many customers who watch gas prices.

"When we've got lower prices, I've got customers who will bring in every vehicle they've got and keep their tanks as full as possible because in a few hours the price might change," Mathena said.

She isn't looking forward to the next time she has to fill her station's tanks because she expects to have to raise prices if the wholesale price goes up.

"It seems like every time we buy gas the prices rises," Mathena said.

That's the case across the state and across the county, said Michael Right, vice president for public affairs for AAA in St. Louis. He said the state average is $1.46 and is expected to rise even more this summer.

Right said people got their hopes up for lower gas prices last March when the cartel of oil-producing countries known as OPEC agreed to increase production. Gas prices did go down in April, bottoming out in Cape Girardeau at around $1.20 per gallon, said Scott Blank, owner of Bi-State Oil Co., where regular unleaded on Monday was $1.39.

But beginning in early May prices began ratcheting back up due to a combination of higher oil prices, reduced output at refineries, increasing demand and a major pipeline break, Right said.

The price increases haven't been as drastic as last February, when wholesale prices were jumping 7 to 8 cents overnight, Blank said. Now it is more like 2- and 3-cent increases per shipment.

But heading into summer, which is peak driving season, demand could cause prices to go even higher, said Jim Maurer, general manager of Rhodes 101 Stops, where regular unleaded on Monday was $1.39.

Right said OPEC will meet again in June, but it is anyone's guess at this time whether the oil-producing countries will vote to increase production again.

In the meantime, Right said many people are taking actions to deal with higher energy costs.

"People are reducing the number of trips they are taking and combining trips to get as much done in one trip as possible," Right said. "They are also using the vehicle in the family that gets the best gas mileage. And people who used to purchase a high grade octane are deciding it's not worth an extra 10 cents on top of already higher prices for a few less knocks when they turn off the engine."

Right said people are also practicing gas-saving driving techniques like reducing speed, turning off the air-conditioning and keep tires inflated to the proper pressure.

They are also looking for bargains when they can find them and with good reason. Terry Irwin was filling up his Chevy van on Monday and said that a fill-up that cost him about $20 in April now costs more like $25.

"I fill up where it's cheaper whenever I can," he said.