Other provinces now feeling B.C.’s pain at the pump: analyst

METRO VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – It looks like provinces around Canada are beginning to feel the pain British Columbians have been having at the pump.

Dan McTeague with GasBuddy.com says near-record gas prices are hitting Calgary and Edmonton, pushing the national average to a five-year high.

He says Alberta is to blame for the national average for regular gas being at 136.0 per litre on Thursday, that’s up from 105.2 on the same date last year.

“Gas retailers have as much to blame here,” said McTeague. “Wholesale prices have gone up for them. In the past several days it has gone off about four and a half cents with GST. They were discounting the 10, 12 cent retail margins and then realized boy, we’re all losing money.'”

McTeague says most Alberta drivers are paying the highest prices they’ve ever paid for gasoline.

Despite the rise, the province’s average price is still lower than the record set in 2008. McTeague says that’s probably thanks to retail giant Costco, which tends to sell gasoline at break-even or lower prices to attract members.

McTeague says the hike won’t last too long, but notes the levels provinces are seeing are still unprecedented.

The average price in B.C. is about 150 per litre.

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