ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Higher gas prices in Canada expected after Russian attack on Ukraine: expert

Share

Canadians can expect even higher prices at the pumps following Russia's attack on Ukraine, one expert tells CTVNews.ca.

"Russia's invasion of Ukraine will have obvious effects on the price of oil and gas, as these two markets are also connected," Werner Antweiler, director of the Sauder School of Business Prediction Markets at the University of British Columbia, said in an email.

Energy economists, he said, expect the war in Ukraine to unsettle markets and raise crude prices well into the range of between US$100 and $120 per barrel.

Russia's attack on Thursday sent shockwaves through the markets, with Moscow's stock exchange suspending trading briefly before experiencing serious losses.

Russia is the world's third largest producer of oil, accounting for .

Antweiler pointed to the price of oil benchmarks Brent crude, which topped US$100 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate, which traded at about US$96.50 earlier Thursday morning.

"These prices will get passed on to consumers. Every one U.S. dollar increase in the crude price will translate into at least a 0.55-cent increase at the pump, if the Canadian dollar rises along with the price of oil," he said.

"That hasn't been the case lately for a number of reasons, and thus the passthrough will be larger."

This means in Canada, a one U.S. dollar increase in crude oil will translate to about 0.8 cents per litre, he said.

At US$90 per barrel, which has been seen over the last couple of weeks, the price of gas in Canada could expect to increase to between eight and 24 cents/l, Antweiler said.

In a province like British Columbia, he said gas will likely top $2/l once taxes and margins are included.

Gas prices have remained elevated in Canada for weeks, hitting record highs in cities such as , B.C.; ; ; and .

Experts cited the possibility of an escalation in tensions between Ukraine and Russia then as a factor.

Dan McTeague, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, told CP24 that gas prices in Ontario .

"This is going to be a much longer term increase in the price of all commodities driven by oil and of course driven by the most serious geopolitical threat the world has faced, at least since the 1940s and 1950s," he said.

"With that in mind, it's likely that oil is going to go to at least $135 a barrel. We're at about $99 right now. The implications of course are at a time in which prices are already elevated. This is only going to compound for many people a lot of pain at the pumps, among other things, as it makes its way to pretty much every other commodity including food."

With files from CTV News and The Associated Press

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

The province's public security minister said he was "shocked" Thursday amid reports that a body believed to be that of a 14-year-old boy was found this week near a Hells Angels hideout near Quebec City.

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

The Montreal couple from Mexico and their three children facing deportation have received a temporary residence permit.

Local Spotlight

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.

Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.

Stay Connected