US gasoline supplies should start the summer driving season at their highest level since 1999, helping to temper a surge in pump prices linked to the soaring cost of crude oil. The outlook for high inventories comes amid shrinking American demand for the motor fuel and robust imports from Europe -- factors that will keep stockpiles plump despite low production from domestic refiners, analysts said.
"We'll continue to have above-average gasoline inventories heading into summer and, if it weren't for the high cost of crude, the price prospects for gasoline would be weaker than they've been for years," said Tim Evans, energy analyst at Citigroup Futures Research in New York.
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