Gas prices continue to climb in August

(NECN/KNSD: Bob Hansen) - The price of gas is taking a bigger chunk out of your wallet these days. After weeks of falling prices, the price at the pump is going up.  

"The price of gas impacts everything, everything that moves, everything that travels by truck or what ever, it's done by fuel prices."  

"I end up cutting other things, like maybe i don't go out as much, or maybe i postpone my laundry for a week."  

"And I know personally for myself being just recently terminated from a job, and just living on my social security, this is not good." 

It's not good to see prices climbing in August, when prices are usually beginning to go down.  

"It's atypical, it's aberrant, it's not supposed to be happening now. Usually, prices peak in June and then start to decline," Oil Industry Analyst Charles Langley said.  

So how fast are prices rising? Well for July, we had the biggest jump for that summer month, since the year 2000.  

"We don't have a very competitive market out here, and that's the problem. It's easier to cooperate than to compete. We're not saying there is a conspiracy to drive prices up it's just that the market is not as competitive as it should be on the wholesale level," Langley said.  

That means people who are counting pennies are going to see more slip through their fingers and into their gas tank.  

"I tend to drive less, drive as little as I can, combine trips." 

The fuel prices are continuing to climb for now... even though the cost to fill your tank usually starts dropping in August or September. But this year, the price of gas has not followed the usual pattern.

It's tough for it to make sense because there are so many factors: The falling value of the dollar can drive up prices. Problems in the Middle East or Europe can impact prices. And that's not even including oil refineries here at home.  

Whatever it is...drivers seem to be the ones paying the bill.