And so apparently is $4 gas. Fred Rozell of OPIS sees $4-$4.25 gas sometime between April and early May. Patrick DeHaan of gasbuddy.com predicts $3.75 to $4.15 by May.

Look out Chicago! DeHaan predicts $4.60-$4.95/gal. LA: mid-to-upper $4.00.

“Bigger cities will always have higher prices due to higher gas taxes and the cost of doing business,” DeHaan said.

Could be worse.

Despite the possibility of record high gas prices this spring, Rozell says things could be worse. “Over the last 10 years, we have tended to see a 75% increase in prices from the winter low to the spring peak. This year, we are only forecasting about a 40% rise because of bearish economic news.”

Oh dear, things don’t look so pleasant. Gas prices in Texas are already up six cents a gallon to $3.12. They only paid $2.90 or so last year.

Here are some forecasts for the coming year:

Head of commodities research at Citigroup Global Markets Inc. says gas may rise over $4 next summer

Tom Kloza at OPIS says prices could rise a high as $3.75-$4.50.

The federal EIA is a little more optimistic, predicting more like $3.45.

After the US Navy removed an air craft carrier from the Persian Gulf, the Iranian military warned Washington not to redeploy it to the area. This news comes in the midst ongoing war games in the Strait of Hormuz, accompanied by tests of new land-to-water cruise missiles.

Despite this, the US military remains unfazed. An official statement from the Pentagon today stated: “These are regularly scheduled movements in accordance with our longstanding commitments to the security and stability of the region and in support of ongoing operations.”

The escalating tensions in Iran have led directly to higher oil prices in the past several days. The Financial Times notes that “the latest comments from Tehran sent Brent crude, the global benchmark, 3.5 per cent higher to $111.35 for the first time in three weeks.”

Again, to stress the importance of the Strait of Hormuz:

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow channel which is the conduit for 17m barrels a day of oil. The US Department of Energy describes the strait as “the world’s most important oil chokepoint”, with an average of 14 supertankers passing through it every day, most of them heading towards Japan, South Korea, India and China.

Analysts believe that Iran would not be able to shut it down completely. But even a brief closure of the strait would have a dramatic impact on oil prices, traders believe, predicting a rise towards $150 a barrel – or beyond, if the disruption is prolonged.

Overall consumer prices were down .1 percent last month. Not much I know, but it’s the first time since June they declined.

A big drop in gas prices led the way. Food prices up, but at the slowest pace of the year. New car prices – down. Hotels & airfare – down.

Oil prices are up over $100/barrel today, but experts note that the price is still cheaper than it was in the Spring. No real inflation worries there.

Oil prices on the upswing again – over $96/barrel on concerns about Iran’s nuclear program. This is the first time over the $96 mark in 3 months.

OPEC increased its forecast for global oil demand by 1.9 million barrels from the previous one.

No surprise, pump prices rose (but only by less than a penny)