“I’ll get rid of my car this October, November,” said Mueller, 80. “I’m retired, and then there ‘s gas and all that. At some point, you have to reduce the reduction. ” Around the world, drivers like Mueller are rethinking their habits and personal finances amid rising gas and diesel prices fueled by Russia’s war in Ukraine and global recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Energy prices are a key driver of inflation that is rising worldwide and makes the cost of living more expensive. A motorcycle taxi driver in Vietnam shuts down his app, instead of burning valuable fuel during backups during rush hour. A French family is reducing their ambitions for an August vacation. A graphic designer in California calculates the price of gas in the bill for a night out. A mom in Rome, calculating the cost of taking her son to camp, mentally crosses a pizza night. Decisions across the global economy are as different as the consumers and the countries themselves: Walk more. Dust this bike. Take the subway, train or bus. Use a lighter touch on the accelerator pedal to save fuel. Check out this road trip – is it worth it? Or maybe even go without a car. For the unspeakable millions who do not have access to adequate public transportation or cannot leave their car, the solution is to grit their teeth and pay by cutting costs elsewhere. Nguyen Trong Tuyen, a motorcycle taxi driver who works for the Grab Online Driving Service in Hanoi, Vietnam, said he was simply disabling the app during rush hour. “If I get stuck in a traffic jam, the charge will not cover the cost of petrol for the trip,” he said. Many drivers have stopped their services, such as Tuyen, making it difficult for customers to book rides. In Manila, Ronald Sibeyee burned 900 pesos ($ 16.83) a day in diesel to run his jeepney, a colorful, popular vehicle for public transportation in the Philippines that evolved from US military jeeps left behind. World War II. Now, it reaches 2,200 pesos ($ 41.40). “It simply came to our notice then. “Now there is nothing left, or anything else,” he said. Its revenue has fallen by about 40% due to rising fuel prices. Gasoline and diesel prices are a complex equation of the cost of crude oil, taxes, purchasing power and wealth of individual countries, government subsidies where they exist, and cuts made by intermediaries such as refineries. Oil is priced in dollars, so if a country is an energy importer, the exchange rate plays a role – the recently weaker euro has helped boost gasoline prices in Europe. And there are often geopolitical factors, such as the war in Ukraine. Buyers who avoid Russian barrels and Western plans to ban the country’s oil have shaken up energy markets already facing tight supplies from the rapid pandemic recovery. There is a world price for oil – about $ 110 a barrel – but there is no world price for pumping due to taxes and other factors. In Hong Kong and Norway, you can pay more than $ 10 per gallon. In Germany, it can be around $ 7.50 per gallon, and in France, around $ 8. While lower fuel taxes mean that the US average for a gallon of gas is slightly cheaper at $ 5, it is still the first time the price has been so high. People in poorer countries are quickly feeling the stress of higher energy prices, but Europeans and Americans are also under pressure. Americans have less access to public transportation, and even Europe’s transit networks do not reach everyone, especially those in the countryside. Charles Dupont, the manager of a clothing store in the Essonne district south of Paris, just has to use his car to get to work. “I practice ecological driving, that is, I drive slower and avoid abrupt braking,” he said. Others do what they can to reduce it. Letizia Cecinelli, filling her car at a gas station in Rome, said she was cycling and trying to reduce car travel “where possible”. “But what if I have a child and I have to take him to camp? “I have to do it by cutting an extra pizza,” he said. Pump prices can be political dynamite. US President Joe Biden has pushed Saudi Arabia to pump more oil to help cut gas prices, deciding to travel to the kingdom next month following the Saudi-led OPEC + decision to boost production . The US and other countries have also released oil from their strategic reserves, which helps, but is not crucial. Several countries have fuel price caps, including Hungary, where the discount does not apply to foreign license plates. In Germany, the government reduced taxes by 35 cents per liter on petrol and 17 cents on diesel, but prices soon began to rise again. Germany has also introduced a monthly ticket with a discount of 9 euros for public transport, which led to busy stations and trains on a recent holiday weekend. But the program only lasts three months and is of little use to people in the countryside if there is no train station nearby. In fact, humans are pumping as much gas as they did before the pandemic, according to the German Gas Association. “People are filling up as much as before – they are moaning but they accept it,” said team spokesman Herbert Ramble. Is there any relief on the horizon? Much depends on how the war in Ukraine affects world oil markets. Analysts say some of Russia’s oil is almost certain to be lost in the markets, as the European Union, Russia’s largest and closest customer, has pledged to close most markets from Moscow within six months. Meanwhile, India and China are buying more Russian oil. Europe will have to source elsewhere, such as Middle Eastern exporters. But OPEC +, which includes Russia, has not achieved its production targets. For many, spending on things like overnight stays and, in Europe, almost religious devotion to late-summer vacations is on the table. Isabelle Bruno, a teacher on the outskirts of Paris, now takes the bus to the train station instead of a 10-minute drive. “My husband and I are very worried about the holidays because we used to drive very often when we were visiting our family in the south of France,” he said. “Now we will pay attention to train tickets and use our car only for short distances.” Leo Theus, a graphic designer from Hayward, San Francisco Bay Area, needs to be “strategic” on a gas budget as he heads to meet customers – he may not fill the tank to the brim. Gas prices in California are the highest in the United States, reaching close to $ 7 per gallon in some parts of the state. When it comes to going to a club or bar after work, “you have to think about gas now, you have to decide, is it really worth it to go out there or not?” said God.
Corona was mentioned from Rome, Le Deley from Paris and Dinh from Hanoi, Vietnam. AP reporters Joeal Calupitan in Manila, Philippines, and Terry Chea in Auckland, California, contributed.
