Oil prices rallied to a record close above $57 a barrel Friday, boosted by a jump in gasoline futures that could send the average retail cost of gasoline above $2.25 a gallon within weeks.
After climbing as high as $57.70 a barrel, a new intraday high, light, sweet crude for May delivery settled at $57.27 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, an increase of $1.87.