Blistering Cold Sends Oil To $83

Oil surged above $83 Wednesday for first time since October of 2008, Reuters reports.

Crude prices had initially dropped after the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a 1.3-million-barrel increase in stockpiles, but expectations of higher demand next week due to cold weather sent the price back up, analysts said.

Divisions between Federal Reserve policymakers over whether to extend a program to bolster America’s housing industry caused the U.S. dollar to drop to three-week lows, which also contributed to the spike in oil.

The new high is not a good sign for consumers, as oil prices doubled in 2009 for much of the same reason.