EIA: Gasoline Prices to Hit $4 This Summer

High crude oil prices will push U.S. gasoline prices to about $4 a gallon nationwide this summer, resulting in weak gasoline demand growth, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said Tuesday.

Retail gasoline prices are expected to average $3.86 a gallon this summer, compared with $2.76 last summer, while the average price of U.S. crude oil for 2011 was revised up by $5 to $106 a barrel, the EIA said in its monthly energy forecast.

High petroleum prices will cut into U.S. gasoline demand, which is expected to increase just 0.5 percent this summer compared to last summer, the EIA said.

(Reporting by Tom Doggett)