Comment on the January 3 posting: CORRECT, as prices reset the next day to $3.15 in Michigan, then later in Indiana.
Monday, January 17, 2022, 8AM: The last time we were dealing with the kind of inflation we’ve seen the past year, I was a kid collecting comic books. From 25 cents in the mid-1970s, I experienced the following with a typical Marvel comic over four years: 25c -> 30c -> 35c -> “Still only 35 cents!” -> 40c. Now that was inflation, percentage-wise! Gas prices are different, with a lot more volatility. (As we wrote last time, “… since the pandemic started, we have seen crazy things like negative oil prices, gas prices collapsing to the $1.40’s and then surging to the $3.40’s ….”) At the same time, fluctuating oil prices feeds into the inflation calculations, and oil prices stay the same or go down, inflation is usually at bay.
In the past month, we have seen oil jump from $70 to Friday’s close near $84, and while we’ve enjoyed our typical holiday gas price swoon, I suspect the fun times are over. Look for a price hike this week, maybe as soon as today, in the $3.19-$3.29 range. -EA
$3.45/3.55 hike in Chicagoland rolling out. This one was premature, just as the last one was long overdue when it happened.
$3.29 in NW Indiana, led by Family Express
South Bend IN – going down just a bit here. $2.99 at ND Speedway. 3 Family Express $2.99-$3.09 Costco $2.93
Niles MI WMT $2.99
6 days later, another hike in Chicagoland… $3.55/3.65. Wholesale 2c higher, retail hike 10c higher.
$3.29 in NW Indiana led by Family Express. Same price as last week though.
South Bend IN – Family Express & Speedway going from $2.97 to $3.29 today. SBN avg now $3.171. Costco $2.91. WMT $2.96.
Niles MI – WMT $2.92. 1 station at $3.29.