Gas prices increase

[SIZE="3"]As the provincial Energy and Utilities board made its weekly adjustment, the maximum retail price of gasoline jumped up [B][COLOR="Red"]1.92 cents [/COLOR][/B]to a new maximum of [B][COLOR="red"]87.34 cents [/COLOR][/B]per litre last night. Mid-grade self-serve increased to 90.73 cents per litre and premium self-serve is now[B][COLOR="red"] 94.12 cents [/COLOR][/B]per litre.

By comparison, at this time last year, regular self-serve gasoline prices were [B][COLOR="red"]118.16 cents[/COLOR][/B] per litre.

Thus far in 2009, gas prices have gone down eight times in the weekly adjustment, while rising nine times. The biggest increase came on Jan. 8, when prices shot up more than nine cents to hit[B][COLOR="red"] 74.98 cents [/COLOR][/B]per litre. The Feb. 25 drop of 5.26 cents per litre has been the biggest decrease thus far in 2009. The net increase has been a roughly 20 cent increase since Jan. 1.

Elsewhere in Atlantic Canada, Nova Scotia gas prices currently range from [B][COLOR="red"]90.4 [/COLOR][/B]to [COLOR="red"]92.1 cents [/COLOR]per litre in the Halifax area, with prices slightly higher outside the city. The province's next adjustment takes place tomorrow at midnight.

In Prince Edward Island, the last regulatory change came April 15 and saw no change to gas prices, which sit between[B] [COLOR="red"]84.6 [/COLOR][/B]and [B][COLOR="red"]86.7 cents [/COLOR][/B]per litre. The next scheduled price adjustment is scheduled for May 1.

In other New Brunswick adjustments from last night, diesel dropped by just over two cents and now sits at[B][COLOR="Red"] 88.74 cents [/COLOR][/B]per litre.

All New Brunswick gas prices listed here do not include the up to [B][COLOR="red"]2.5 cent [/COLOR][/B]per litre delivery charge.

Heating oil dropped from [B][COLOR="red"]70.98 cents[/COLOR][/B] per litre to [B][COLOR="red"]69.95 cents [/COLOR][/B]per litre, while propane now sits at 82.85 cents per litre, a decrease of 0.54 of a cent.

Prices listed here do not include the up to 10-cent delivery charges associated with heating oil and propane. This week, benchmark crude for May delivery has been selling around US$46 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, which is similar to where prices were in early December 2008. During that time in New Brunswick, the maximum retail price of regular unleaded self-serve gasoline was [B][COLOR="red"]80.13 cents[/COLOR][/B] per litre.

The N.B. benchmark rate is based on the average daily price at the N.Y. Harbor division of the N.Y. Mercantile Exchange.[/SIZE]