If crude oil prices were to surge to two hundred dollars per barrel, retail gasoline prices at the pump would experience a drastic upward spike, easily pushing average costs well past five to six dollars per gallon in the United States, and significantly higher in regions with heavy fuel taxation like Europe. Because crude oil serves as the primary feedstock for refined petroleum products, a doubling of baseline oil prices directly inflates refinery processing, logistics, and retail distribution costs across the entire consumer transportation fuel market.