Summer travel will cost a little less this year compared to 2022.
That's according to the latest forecast from Deloitte Canada’s Resource Evaluation and Advisory (REA) group.
The price of oil is expected to edge up slightly this summer, but motorists shouldn't feel too much pain at the gas pumps. Partner Andrew Botterill said overall global demand is expected to remain muted.
"Producers and energy companies in North America have become remarkably efficient at bringing on new volumes. Drilling is up in the United States and we're expecting prices to be a little softer," he explained.
He observed that prices are expected to remain in the range of $72 to $75 per barrel for the rest of the year, which will translate into fairly stable prices at the pumps.
"And where we are right now is likely to be where we're going to be through much of much of this summer," Botterill continued. "We may see things elevate a little through July and August as we see the big driving season move forward. But I would expect what things look like at the pump right now is something similar to what we're gonna see for the rest of the summer."
There's also good news for natural gas consumers in the quarterly outlook, as Botterill predicted customers will likely see prices hold the line for the rest of the year.
"I think natural gas is extremely soft when we look at where it was last year," he pointed out. "So, you know, last year we were talking four, five and $6 per MCF prices. And right now we're looking at something closer to $2 for the rest of this year."
"Drilling in the US, drilling in Canada certainly brought a lot of production on and to be honest, it was a little bit of a moderate winter and consumption was down throughout the winter," he explained. "So we have ample supply and it should mean that we're going to have relatively low natural gas prices through the rest of this year."
