Will Turmoil in Egypt Lead Us to Pay More at the Pump?

The protests in Egypt is changing the political landscape in the Land of the Pharaohs, but it can also change how much we pay for gas at the pump. The unrest is affecting transport of oil through Egypt's Suez Canal, and the world markets are already seeing rising prices for crude oil.

An excerpt from National Geographic Daily News:

The price of oil reached more than $100 a barrel this week for the first time since 2008, based on the benchmark Brent contract, which is widely used in Europe and Asia. In the United States, the benchmark price stayed lower, about $92 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and was falling off slightly from last week.

Each dollar increase in the price of oil translates to roughly a 2.4-cent-per-gallon (0.6-cent-per-liter) hike in the price of fuel, although many other market conditions affect the actual price that consumers pay at the pump. Bloggers and some analysts have focused on the risk of oil shock posed by a potential closure of Egypt's Suez Canal, the 142-year-old man-made waterway linking the Mediterranean and the Red seas. But energy experts say the oil market is concerned about Egypt not as a commodity route, but as a gateway to further political instability.

Find the rest of the article here.