As oil prices continue to soar, talk of economic ruin subsides

WASHINGTON - When oil prices briefly touched $70.85 a barrel last August, many experts thought that such high prices, if sustained, would toss the U.S. economy into recession. Oil now hovers around $75, but this time there isn't much talk of economic ruin.

Economists now expect the high prices to shave the economy's growth rate some, but most think that the U.S. and global economies are resilient enough to weather the rising energy costs. A national average of $2.91 per gallon of gasoline provokes grimaces at the pump, but it's not high enough to send the economy into a tailspin.story continued