Gas prices manipulated

I agree with the recent letter writer about Speedway’s gas pumps with annoying video advertising. There is no mute button and no way to turn it off. Give us a break; we are all tired of being bombarded by unwanted video advertising.

More troubling is the apparent gasoline price manipulation. According to a 2015 lawsuit filed by Kentucky’s attorney general, Speedway/Marathon (they are the same company) has engaged in what news reports described as “anti-competitive practices that lead to higher gas prices in the state” and unlawful “exchange agreements” with other refiners to keep their products out of the Kentucky market.

Marathon is the dominant petroleum supplier in Kentucky, so BP and Shell simply follow Marathon’s random price spikes. This is nothing new: In 2002, Sen. Carl Levin testified before a Senate hearing that “Speedway, owned by Marathon, has a pricing practice that bumps up the retail price of gasoline on Wednesdays and Thursdays ... as the price leader in Michigan, once Speedway goes up, the other brands follow.”

Speedway in Corbin (exit 25) was recently charging $1.99 per gallon, while Speedway in Lexington charged $2.45 on the same day. It’s all price manipulation.

This story was originally published November 14, 2017 at 6:25 PM with the headline "Gas prices manipulated."