WASHINGTON, Nov. 17 (Reuters) – US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday there was growing evidence of anti-consumer behavior by oil and gas companies who were keeping fuel prices low. high level, asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate possible “illegal conduct” in the market.

The White House is pushing on multiple fronts to try to reduce fuel costs, even as tight global oil supplies push up gasoline and heating oil prices. Retail gasoline prices recently hit seven-year highs as consumer demand rebounded while oil supply remains below pre-pandemic peaks.

Biden in August asked the FTC to investigate possible illegal behavior behind the spike in gas prices, which is contributing to the spike in inflation. On Wednesday, he told FTC President Lina Khan in a letter that further action was needed.

“The Federal Trade Commission has the power to review whether illegal driving is costing families at the pump. I think you should do so immediately,” he wrote.

An FTC spokesperson said they were also concerned about the issues raised in the White House letter and that the consumer protection agency was reviewing the situation, a spokesperson said.

Gas prices have continued to rise at the pump even as the price of unfinished gasoline has fallen over the past month, Biden said, noting that America’s two largest oil and gas companies were on the way to almost double their net income compared to 2019.

“I do not accept that hard-working Americans pay more for gasoline because of anti-competitive or potentially illegal behavior,” the president said in a letter to Khan.

“I therefore ask the Commission to take a closer look at what is happening with the oil and gas markets, and that you use all the tools of the Commission if you discover wrongdoing.”

The two largest U.S. oil and gas companies by market capitalization, Exxon (XOM.N) and Chevron (CVX.N), respectively, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Biden’s approval ratings have fallen to the lowest point of his presidency in recent months amid growing concerns about the price hike, though his top economic advisers still say the hike will be transient and should end. tone down next year.

Republicans are using inflation concerns as a “club” to hammer home the Biden administration, press secretary Jen Psaki said last week.

The FTC could use its authority to launch an “open study investigation” to obtain data on how companies set gas prices and study actual prices at the pump, the White House said.

Kevin Book, managing director of Clearview Energy Partners, said price changes often take time to trickle down to consumers.

“There is a high like a rocket, low like a feather phenomenon happening at the pump and that frustrates politicians,” he said.

For example, futures prices for unfinished gasoline fell $ 1.18 per gallon between January and the end of March last year during the first outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, but retail prices did not only dropped 45 cents before ebbing later. (For the graph, see https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-BIDEN/GASPRICES/jnvwexkrovw/)

The FTC has looked at this issue on several occasions and often comes back empty, Book said, adding that there are simply too many players in the retail gasoline market for them to come to an agreement.

The average retail price of gasoline per gallon in the United States was $ 3,413 on Wednesday, down from $ 3.319 a month ago, according to the American Automobile Association. The current futures price of unfinished gasoline known as RBOB is trading at $ 2.317 per gallon, but it was trading at $ 2.49 per gallon a month ago.

The price of crude oil is half the cost of retail gasoline, according to the US Department of Energy, followed by local and state taxes, as well as the costs of refining, transportation and distribution.

Retail gasoline prices vary state to state, with prices around $ 3 in Oklahoma and up to $ 4.69 per gallon in California, due to excise taxes. Condition and other factors. The federal tax on gasoline is 18 cents per gallon.

Biden said he appreciated the FTC asking Commission staff to step up oversight of oil and gas mergers that result in less choice for consumers and potentially higher prices.

Reuters reported last month that U.S. antitrust regulators have extended the approval process for at least five oil and gas mergers and acquisitions in the past three months.

Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Jarrett Renshaw; additional reporting by Diane Bartz and Sabrina Valle; Editing by Heather Timmons, Andrea Ricci and Chizu Nomiyama

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