Reuters Money

There’s not much that’s good or reassuring that can be said about rising oil prices and their effects on consumers. Crude costs rise halfway around the world, and U.S. drivers and shoppers feel it in their wallets faster than the actual oil could be shipped. On a macro level, analysts frequently suggest that every $10 per barrel increase in the price of oil cuts half a percentage point off of world gross domestic product growth.

The latest hit occurred because of turmoil in Libya, which interrupted production there. Oil prices surged, with prices for U.S. crude futures jumping over $103 a barrel in intraday trading Thursday, up 15 percent from Friday’s $89.71 close. That hike was short lived, as Saudi Arabia stepped up to guarantee supplies and oil prices walked part way back to under $97 a barrel.

But consumer gasoline prices won’t be so quick to reverse course. In the Midwest, gas prices were up about 20 cents a gallon in the first three days of this week, according to Fred Rozell of the Oil Price Information Service.  They have already risen more than 50 cents a gallon in the past year, even before the Libya effect took hold, according to the Department of Energy. Drivers in parts of California, Hawaii, New York and Washington are already paying more than $3.55 a gallon, according to GasBuddy.com.

The national average will probably be between $3.60 to $3.80 by Memorial Day, Rozell says.

What’s a consumer to do, besides sigh and take the hit? Here are a few strategies.

Watch for fuel surcharges. Airlines have already been raising ticket charges. But if higher oil prices hold, you can expect fuel surcharges on top of that. Also on car rental contracts, cruise tickets and more. You can’t really avoid them, but if you already have travel plans in place, you can try to book tickets before those extra fees show up.

Optimize your trips. Not sure whether to fly or drive and which route to take? You can use the calculator at GasBuddy to put in a trip and it will let you know how much it’s going to cost, based on the local cost of gasoline where you’re going. Or use one of several smartphone apps that will find the cheapest gas prices near where you are.

Track your costs. If you drive business miles, don’t be lazy about keeping track of them so you can either deduct your cost or bill your boss for them. The going rate from the Internal Revenue Service is 51 cents a mile. You can do this with a simple notebook in your car, or get a device that will do it for you automatically at CarCheckup.

Get a rebate. Some credit cards still offer as much as five percent back on your gasoline purchases; if you’re going to be paying $4 a gallon this summer, that’s like saving $3 every time you fill up a 16-gallon tank. Better than a stick in the eye, right?   Find a list at Index Credit Cards.

Save elsewhere. When gasoline prices rise, consumers typically respond by tightening their belts in ways that may seem unrelated, according to Rozell.   They switch from steak to hamburger and stop buying premium brands. That makes sense, as money they might otherwise spend on food gets deflected to their driving budget. One other way to save? Buy domestic. The cost of oil contributes as much as 20 percent of the cost of electronics that ship from India other East Asian countries, reports ComputerWorld. Perhaps as shipping costs rise, U.S. goods might become more competitive.