With so many products using oil, consumers can't escape the pain at the pump

Gas prices started at $3.94 a gallon on Monday in Michiana, and by the end of the day, they were at $4.17 at most places.

The pain at the pump is going to be felt just about everywhere else.

Experts said get ready to prioritize your spending because there will be a price hike on all consumer goods, and right now there's no end in sight.

"How is business? That's one question. How does fuel affect it? It's making it difficult," said Ken Cubberley, owner of Keystone Logistics, a trucking company.

Cubberley's trucking company could be in danger.

"The pressing factor is the fuel, and that has caused a real problem for our trucks," he said.

His trucks carry goods to grocery stores and places like Super Wal-Mart and Meijer.

Since diesel prices have gone up, his truckers have imposed a fuel surcharge on deliveries.

"If you're seeing an increase in prices at the store, it's largely due to fuel and transportation costs," Cubberley said.

Experts say get ready to pay more for just about everything you buy.

"Think about everything made from petroleum," said Notre Dame economic professor Tom Gresik. "From cosmetics to paint, and plastics."

Gresik said, from lipstick to house paint, we are in constant competition for oil.

"What we have to do in the Michiana area, what the distributors have to do, is look farther afield to try to get gasoline, and the only way a supplier is going to sell it to us is if we are willing to pay more than their current customers," Gresik said.

Gresik said it's Econ 101 — supply and demand.

China and India's booming economies are driving up demand and the cost of fuel.

But Cubberley isn't buying it.

"Supply and demand is not the issue," Cubberley said. "The big money and the speculators are what's driving it."

Cubberley's trucking company hasn't been hit too hard yet, but he knows that could change.

"There's a lot of people out there operating day to day, hand to mouth and they're not gonna be able to last," he said.

Gresik said these high gas prices come at a time when most businesses are still trying to recover from the economic downtown in 2008.

Consumer confidence has been on the rise, but that may not be the case if the price of fuel keeps going up.

Gresik also believes the high gas prices will affect the economic recovery.

People won't be spending money on goods or luxuries because gas costs so much.

This will cause consumer confidence to diminish and then the economy will slow down.