Sticker Shock: Food, Gas Prices Going Up Soon

You don't have to be an expert to notice that costs for many essentials are at all-time high. From gas to food, Americans can expect to pay even more in coming months.

The current national average for a gallon of gasoline is $3.67, higher than it's been since 2008.

The higher prices are being blamed, in part, on the instability in Iraq.

According to AAA, both gas prices and global oil prices have steadily risen since ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) took control of Mosul last week. The brutal jihadist army is actually flying its flag over Iraq's largest oil refinery.

High demand and the cost of drilling also play a role in the high price consumers are seeing at the pump.

"It's a lot more expensive to drill for oil today so we need higher prices," oil and gas broker Tom McCarty said.

"Again, if you look at the history going back for the last four years anyway, you know oil prices have been pretty stable," he noted. "Now they tend to swing to the 105 range back down to the 93 range."

"And one of these days it's going to break out above that and I'm afraid we may be close to that happening just simply because of more demand," he warned.
    
The cost of food is also sky-rocketing.
    
The price index for meats, poultry, fish and eggs hit an all-time high in May, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    
Meat costs are rising the fastest. A seven-year decline in herds has left the fewest cattle in at least six decades.
    
Analysts warn the high prices for both food and gas are here to stay for a while.

To make matters worse, Senate lawmakers actually proposed legislation this week to raise the federal gas and diesel taxes by 12 cents per gallon over the next two years.
    
The proposal was pitched as a way to pay for highway and transit programs.