Because of oil’s role in modern industry and life – supplying consumers with gasoline for their cars and fuel to heat their homes, manufacturers with raw materials, and farmers with fertilizers and chemicals – changes to its price can have a widespread effect. Even before the recent events in the Gulf of Mexico, oil held center stage on the economic arena for well over a year. Fears of global demand outstripping supply have been stoked by stories about the potential for reaching a peak in production followed by an inevitable decline in overall supply. Refineries have been running at maximum capacity to try and match a seemingly insatiable demand, and any hint of interruption has caused prices to leap in the market. While the devastation and human toll from Hurricane Katrina have yet to be fully understood, its impact to the price of gasoline across the nation has thrust oil even further to the front of economic discussions. The following may help put the current price of oil and gasoline into a historical perspective.

. Price of oil in nominal and real terms . Price of gasoline in nominal and real terms . Gasoline and oil as percent of personal spending.......