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Economic Viewpoint

Gas prices may have seen their trough, but 2017 should not be too painful

February 22, 2017
François Dupuis, Vice-President and Chief Economist • Francis Généreux, Senior Economist

Drivers across the planet took full advantage of the decline in oil prices, which started tumbling in mid-2014. Much like oil prices, gas prices started to pick up again in 2016 and everything indicates that their cyclical low is now behind us. Our forecasts for oil prices do not point to a significant gas price increase in the coming quarters. Quebec’s taxes on gas have stabilized after spiking at the end of the 2000s, but the carbon cost could continue to exert upward pressure on fuel prices.