OIL PRICE SURGE IMPACTS AIRLINES, TRUCKING COMPANIES

OIL PRICE SURGE IMPACTS AIRLINES, TRUCKING COMPANIES       A sharp rise in the cost of oil brought on by a recent cold snap in the U.S. Northeast is “about to stun homeowners, airlines and trucking companies,” according to OPIS Energy Group, a New Jersey-based company that tracks wholesale and retail fuel prices.
      OPIS Energy said wholesale fuel prices jumped 40 to 60 cents per gallon higher last week, as oil makers scrambled to find barrels to make home heating oil for needy customers in New England.
      Jet fuel price increases were “drastic,” the group said. Airlines that could buy fuel for less than 75 cents per gallon a month ago saw prices soar to $1.30 to $1.35 per gallon at major East Coast airports on Friday.
      “Stiff retail diesel prices will rear their heads before the month is over,” OPIS said, citing a nationwide retail average of $1.37 per gallon for diesel on Jan. 1.
      “In Connecticut and Massachusetts, for example, the average price for diesel stood at $1.39 per gallon on Jan. 21. Retailers replacing those gallons faced a cost of over $1.60 per gallon heading into the weekend,” the group said.