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American Morning
Interview with Marion Asnes, 'Money' Magazine
Aired May 01, 2002 - 07:42 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: You have probably noticed the prices at the gas pump were up about 25 percent since the beginning of the year, and you're not the only one who wants to know why. The cost of gas was the subject of heated debate yesterday at a Senate hearing, and oil executives blame a tug-of-war between supply and demand. But some in Congress accuse the industry of manipulating oil prices.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CARL LEVIN (D), MICHIGAN: The ability to control supply allows oil companies to spike prices in a concentrated market without adequate competition to challenge them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZAHN: The head of one oil company responded to the charges of price fixing at the pump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARY HEMINGER, PRESIDENT, MARATHON ASHLAND PETROLEUM: A central question in this hearing is whether my company deliberately withheld reformulated gasoline from the market in the spring of 2000 to boost prices. The answer is an emphatic no.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZAHN: And joining us now to talk more about the gas price confusion, Marion Asnes with "Money" magazine -- good morning.
MARION ASNES, "MONEY" MAGAZINE: Good morning.
ZAHN: All right. So we may not have gotten a satisfactory consensus on why gas prices are going up.
ASNES: No, and we never will.
ZAHN: But people are very upset that they are paying 25 percent more than they were at the beginning of the year. Why?
ASNES: Of course they are, if you think about a few facts. One is that 87 percent of working Americans drive to work every day. And once you think about that, you think about how dependent we all are on filling up our cars every day, and so this money is going to be felt. People are also feeling a little less prosperous than they did at this time at a year ago or two years ago. So that in this case, every little bit hurts instead of helping, so that's a real issue for people.
ZAHN: And this really affects consumer confidence.
ASNES: Well, of course. You know, "Money" magazine, along with ABC, has been doing a consumer confidence index for about the past 15 years. And this last confidence measure, which took place last week, people were saying they felt it, and they felt bad about it.
ZAHN: So what can Americans look forward to this summer? Memorial Day is sort of the corner we all turn, we sort of put together their vacation days.
ASNES: That's right.
ZAHN: And they plan to hit the road.
ASNES: That's right. And that's also the corner we turn if you look at the seasonal peaks in gas prices. Usually the highest gas prices occur within two weeks of Memorial Day on one side or the other of that holiday. And after that, gas prices start to drift down again, so you can look forward to a little relief.
ZAHN: Why the spike in price either two weeks before or two weeks after Memorial Day?
ASNES: It has to do with a couple of things. One is that we have in this country a very narrow buffer between the supply of gasoline and the market. Our refineries are operating at more than 90 percent of capacity about all of the time. So as the gas companies start laying in their supply for the peak driving season, they are laying in extra gas, and that does put upward pressure on prices. Once that gas is bought and distributed to the stations, then you can see these orders easing off and then prices start drifting back down. So it's kind of a natural ebb and flow that goes on.
ZAHN: In the meantime, you have some really good advice here...
ASNES: Yes.
ZAHN: ... for drivers to try to keep their costs down, and we're going to put a graphic up on the screen...
ASNES: Fantastic.
ZAHN: ... to reinforce that.
ASNES: Fantastic. There are a lot of things you can do. One is keep your car well-maintained, change your oil, get those tune-ups, have the electricity checked out according to the maintenance schedule. This can make a difference of as much as five miles to the gallon in your car. So you know, go for it.
Also shift into conservation mode. What that means is if you have a lot of little errands, do them all together. Minimize the amount of trips you are taking every day, and if you can bear this thought, car pool. It really makes a difference in what you spend and the time you are in traffic.
ZAHN: Paying off credit cards.
ASNES: And pay off your credit cards, because if this is more than a seasonal blip and it does become an inflationary trend in our economy as rising fuel prices can do, interest rates could rise, and you are stuck with a bigger credit card bill.
ZAHN: And there is also a Web site that you want to call attention to this morning.
ASNES: That's right.
ZAHN: We'll put that up on the screen.
ASNES: That's right. That is right.
ZAHN: And this will help people find cheap gas...
ASNES: That's right.
ZAHN: ... across the country.
ASNES: If you are going to shop competitively in your neighborhood and shop carefully, try a Web site called GasPriceWatch.com. You plug in your zip code and how far you are willing to travel to get there, and it will tell you the prices around your neighborhood, so you can get the best deal.
ZAHN: WWW.GasPriceWatch.com.
ASNES: That's right.
ZAHN: Marion Asnes, thanks for your advice this morning.
ASNES: Glad to be here.
ZAHN: Our pleasure to have you here with us on A.M.
ASNES: Thank you.
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