Frustration at the pump: U.S. gasoline prices rise even as demand drops

Driving in the U.S. will probably become even more costly in the months ahead, since gasoline prices are likely to rise, even as overall U.S. gasoline demand drops.

The culprit is the price of oil, which accounts for about 60-65 percent of the cost of a gallon of gasoline, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Oil, which rose $2.62 to $81.74 per barrel on Wednesday at mid-day, has soared 125 percent since plunging to about $35 per barrel last winter. Further, in the last six weeks alone, oil has jumped about 20 percent.