re: pain from the pump! (the rest)
Now, more than two years of runaway oil prices are slowing — but not stopping — world economic growth. The economy in the U.S., the world's greatest consumer of crude, grew at a 3.8 percent rate in the first three months of this year. China's economy is expected to expand by about 9 percent in 2005, although it ranks right behind the United States in energy use.
India and other Asian powerhouses also report solid growth. Even most of Western Europe's economies, though certainly feeling the pinch from high oil prices, remain in the black.
Peter Morici, a business professor at University of Maryland, says that while the oil spike has acted as a speed bump to world economic growth, it will not translate into recession this time.
"First, oil prices would have to reach about $90 a barrel to match their previous high in inflation-adjusted dollars," Morici says. "Second, oil is now a smaller share of what we spend (on energy), and this lowers the impact of higher oil prices on both consumers and businesses. Third, we have learned to live with fluctuating oil prices and not to panic."
Consumers still are hurting, however.
Pain at the pump German drivers lucky enough to live close to Poland cross the border to fill up on gas that is about 15 percent cheaper than the premium of near 1.30 euros a liter ($6 per gallon) they usually see. They also are venting — Juergen Albrecht of the German automobile club ADAC says his organization is inundated by calls from enraged drivers.
"They've long crossed the pain threshold," says Albrecht of German gas prices. Michaela Arnusch of Austria's main motor club says she has been getting a rash of e-mails from enraged members "demanding we do something" about pricey gas.
In America, most people are taking the price hikes in stride and statistics show they are driving more than they did a year ago. But some motorists have simply parked their cars.
Ralph Lorenz of Montgomery, West Virginia, started taking public transportation to his restaurant job in February. He says he is leaving his car parked "until I can afford to pay for it."
Frank Natoli of Newton, New Jersey speaks longingly of the days when his 1972 Plymouth Road Runner cost $10 to fill the tank — and he considered that exorbitant.
"Yesterday my Isuzu Trooper demanded $46," he said, shortly after oil prices first rose over $60.
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