The rising costs of basic commodities have motorists looking for ways to save on gas, and for gas stations that offer fuel at a cheaper price. Understanding gas station pricing A gas station is a facility that sells fuels and other types of lubricants for road vehicles which is usually gasoline or diesel fuel. Some gas stations also have specialty fuels such as the liquefied petroleum gas, natural gas or kerosene. Recently, gas stations have added shops and convenience stores to their main business. In the United States and Canada, federal, state and provincial local sales taxes are usually included in the gas price. Taxes from gas are often used to finance transportation developments such as road maintenance and construction. In the United States, the states of Hawaii and California have the most expensive gasoline. In Canada, fuel prices peak in British Columbia and Quebec. Gas is cheapest in Alberta - a province that produces oil. The provinces of Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland have laws that regulate the prices of gasoline, so these provinces have the lowest cost of gas in the whole country. Individual gas stations in America do not have much control over prices of gasoline. The wholesale price of gasoline is determined by oil companies providing the gasoline in a particular place. The prices are dictated by the world market and set by area by the gasoline supplier. Individual gas stations will definitely not sell gasoline at a loss. The margin for profit is typically from seven to eleven cents per gallon. Their prices are limited to a certain extent, though, because gasoline is still a product, and those who charge higher than the wholesale price will lose customers to other gas stations. To make up for the lower profits, a lot of gas stations vend more expensive food and other products through their convenience stores. |
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