Canadians to see slight relief at the pumps heading into the weekend

Paul Hollingsworth looks at gas prices heading into the weekend and why Canadians might be getting a slight break at the pumps.

HALIFAX – Every time Jordan Poole fills up at the gas station near his home in Halifax, his reaction is always the same.

“I think, ‘oh, there goes some more dollars out of my bank account that I’d rather be putting somewhere else,’” he Poole.

Taxi driver Michael Tran said the high cost at the pumps is crushing his business.

“Lately it is horrible,” said Tran, who has been driving a cab since 1991.

But finally, there is some good news for drivers across the country – the price of gas is down considerably.

“The average decrease was nine cents a litre,” said Dan McTeague, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy.

In the three Maritime provinces, gas is more expensive compared to the national average, but Nova Scotians are still enjoying a drop of more than three cents heading into the weekend, with prices in Halifax sitting just above $1.92 a litre for regular self-serve gasoline.

“And they’re likely to see another four-cent decrease on Saturday on average in Canada,” said McTeague, who added diesel has also dropped nine cents a litre in many parts of Canada.

According to McTeague, the drop in cost has been sparked by a reduction in stored gas, which helps set the price of fuel throughout North America. There is also some renewed optimism about the war with Iran ending, which impacts the oil markets.

It should all be welcome news, but Halifax commuter Chris Weiler remained skeptical as he fuelled up on Friday.

“In the grand scheme of things, you’ll end up paying more next week,” said Weiler. “It is insane. You can’t catch a break and my road trip in three days is going to cost me $300 more than it would have a few months back.”

McTeague confirmed Weiler’s concerns and expects gas to again climb in price before the weekend is over.

“On Sunday, I’m expecting anywhere from a three-to-five cent increase,” he said.

McTeague said Canada’s surging fuel prices continue to be linked to world events. As long as the war with Iran continues and the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked, any drop in gas and diesel prices will be short-lived, because of the continued strain on the global oil supply.

“The world today is short 1.6 billion barrels of oil and we are in a world that uses 100 million barrels a day,” said McTeague, who has concerns the cost of oil could jump to $150 a barrel over the next several months.

That would increase the price of gas by another 40 cents a litre, at a time when Canadians would be driving more during the summer season.