Oil Prices Reach $139.12!

Oil and gasoline prices are exploding, again.

Crude oil could reach $150 by the Fourth of July, Morgan Stanley analyst Ole Slorer wrote in a research note on Friday, June 6. Crude oil prices surged more than $11 on Friday to $139.12 a barrel, setting another record. Prices closed the day at $138.54, up $10.75.
Oil could continue to spike because Asia is "taking an unprecedented share" of Middle East exports, Slorer wrote. Oil also rose after an Israeli minister said an attack on Iran may be necessary, according to Bloomberg News.
The latest record breaks a previous high set on May 22 before the Memorial Day driving season began.
Gasoline prices have set records of their own, although it will be at least another week before the national average of regular unleaded gasoline eclipses $4.
As of today, regular unleaded gasoline averaged $3.98 across the country, up 37 cents from a month ago. Midgrade went up 39 cents to $4.23 a gallon. Premium averaged $4.38, up 40 cents from a month ago.
Diesel averages fell to $4.76 a gallon, down 3 cents from a new high that was set last week. The price of diesel is still up 52 cents from a month ago, according to AAA, of Heathrow, Fla.
E85 was priced at $3.29, which is up 12.2 cents from last month. The adjusted price of E85 averaged $4.33 a gallon, up 16 cents from a month ago. The price of E85 is adjusted to reflect the fuel's lower energy content compared with gasoline.
AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report provides national average fuel prices based on data from as many as 85,000 filling stations nationwide.
Drivers in Kailua Kona, Hawaii, are seeing the highest pump prices in the United States at $4.74 a gallon, a 15 cent increase from a nationwide high it set two weeks ago. Virginia Beach, Va., has the lowest gasoline prices in the nation at $3.59 a gallon, according to www.GasPriceWatch.com. The Web site relies on volunteers to report gasoline prices nationwide.