Webinar — What’s Up with Prices at the Pump?

U.S. gasoline and diesel prices have hit record levels. Here and around the world, prices of refined products have increased even more sharply than crude oil prices. Higher prices at the pump can put a strain on family pocketbooks, business spending, inflation and foreign policy — and potentially impact upcoming elections.

At this webinar, an expert panel discussed what’s driving prices at the pump and what we can expect next. We heard perspectives from the Center for Energy Studies senior director Kenneth B. Medlock III, Rapidan Energy Group founder and president Robert McNally, ESAI Energy, LLC president Sarah Emerson, and Lutz Kilian, a senior economic policy advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, on the following questions:

How are prices at the pump being affected by the ongoing disruptions related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? How are Saudi Arabia and other members of the so-called OPEC+ group responding? How do refinery constraints in the U.S. and elsewhere impact the economics of turning crude oil into gasoline and diesel fuel? Why do prices at the pump rise rapidly, but fall slowly? And finally, what can policymakers in the U.S. and elsewhere do to provide relief for drivers?

McNally's presentation slides are available here and Kilian's presentation slides are available here.

Following opening remarks from the panelists, Mark Finley, the fellow in energy and global oil at the Baker Institute, moderated a discussion and an audience Q&A.

This event was sponsored by the Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies. Follow @CES_Baker_Inst on Twitter or LinkedIn, and join the conversation online with #BakerEnergy.

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Panelists

Sarah Emerson
President, ESAI Energy, LLC

Lutz Kilian, Ph.D.
Senior Economic Policy Advisor, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

Robert McNally
President, Rapidan Energy Group

Kenneth B. Medlock III, Ph.D.
James A. Baker, III, and Susan G. Baker Fellow in Energy and Resource Economics; Senior Director, Center for Energy Studies, Baker Institute