Gas prices stay stubbornly high

Chicago Tribune: After a harsh winter, it’s time to get out and hit the open road. So what’s with $4-a-gallon gasoline? North American oil production is on the rise, so you might have expected a break at the pump by now. Yet gas prices remain stubbornly high.

What happened to the homegrown energy boom? Wasn’t North Dakota supposed to be America’s Saudi Arabia? How come gas isn’t back to $2 a gallon?

The boom is real, and North Dakota, along with states and Canadian provinces, is producing a gusher of oil. The North American energy bonanza now underway is helping the U.S. economy to pull out of the doldrums. It helped ease the pain of residents during the cold winter, since stepped-up natural gas production kept heating bills lower.

But gasoline, alas, is not going to be half-price anytime soon, if ever. America’s oil boom is delivering broad benefits, but not necessarily at the pump.

The good news is that oil analysts say gas prices probably peaked for this year in late April. Based on today’s market conditions, prices should decline by a nickel or a dime over the next month. The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects a gallon of regular unleaded to sell for an average of $3.48 nationwide in 2014 and $3.39 in 2015.