The high gasoline prices have hit the US consumer, and the President has responded.
President Joe Biden has written to the FTC Chair Lina Khan, drawing her attention to ‘mounting evidence of anti-consumer behavior by the oil and gas companies.’
Despite the decline in oil and gas prices, the price at the pump is high, said the President.
The President said that usually, the gas prices at the pump correspond to the price of the unfinished gasoline (crude oil), and while that is the case, the cost of unfinished gas has gone down by 5 percent in the last month, and yet the gas prices at the pump have gone up by 3 percent.
The gap between these prices is higher than the pre-pandemic average, the President wrote.
Mr. Biden said that the two biggest oil and gas companies by market capitalization are on track to nearly double their net income, and the FTC could use all its tools to check any wrongdoing.
Regular gas is costing an average of $ 3.4 per gallon in the US at the moment. The Premium version is selling at around $ 4.
A gallon is 3.785 liters. So, placing the dollar value at around Rs 75, liter petrol (regular) is selling between Rs 65 – Rs 70 in the US.
But this is not much of a surprise. Traditionally, gas prices have always been lower in the US, owing to some domestic production and fewer taxes.