Alaska crude nears $74, hits new record

The price for North Slope oil hit a record $73.89 July 5 on West Coast open markets. The previous record of $72.88 was set May 2.

Other grades of oil also jumped, propelled by a rally in gasoline that analysts said could send average U.S. pump prices past $3 a gallon.

Recent snags in oil shipping and refining along the Gulf Coast have raised traders’ concerns about motor-fuel supplies at a time when demand continues to rise despite soaring prices.

“Everybody thought we’d hit a price that would create permanent demand destruction. But demand for gasoline is rising,” said Alaron Trading Corp. analyst Phil Flynn. “Once again the American public has shown its ability to get over paying high prices for gasoline.”

With refiners fetching the equivalent of $95 a barrel or more for gasoline — a barrel holds 42 gallons — “one doesn’t have to be disciplined in the buying of crude,” said Tom Kloza, an oil analyst at Oil Price Information Service in Wall, N.J.

Oil prices are now roughly 26 percent higher than a year ago but still below all-time inflation-adjusted highs of about $90.

—The Associated Press