Oil surge could trim 1.5 points off US economic growth

A top White House economic aide to President George Bush said that the surge in oil prices could cut at least 1.5 percentage points off US economic growth if it continues.
"The high price of oil has already cost us a significant amount in terms of economic growth," Edward Lazear, the chairman of the president's Council of Economic Advisers, said in a speech to the Hudson Institute, a Washington-based think tank.
Lazear estimated that each 10-dollar rise in the price of oil per barrel over the course of the year reduces gross domestic product (GDP) growth by about a quarter of a point.
Oil prices have skyrocketed since crossing 100 dollars for the first time on January 2. Prices hit record highs above 135 dollars last week before easing back on concerns about demand from the sluggish US economy. The New York benchmark contract rebounded Wednesday to above 130 dollars.