Oil prices set a new inflation-adjusted record Monday, topping the previous high set nearly three decades ago, as supply worries continued to fuel a rally in energy markets.

Oil prices fell back Tuesday, but worries remain.

While crude prices are leading to higher costs for gasoline and other energy goods, they are not seen by economists as enough to significantly damage the economy.

The price of a barrel of light, sweet crude oil trading for delivery in December rose $1.67, or 1.8%, to $93.53 Monday. That beat the previous record when adjusted for inflation of $93.09 a barrel set in January 1981, according to the government’s Energy Information Administration. At that time, the price was $38.85.

Prices rose Monday as rising tensions in the Middle East heightened concern among investors who have been fretting about tight energy supplies. Also receiving blame was a partial shutdown in Mexico’s oil production and further declines in the dollar. Oil prices are 60% higher than a year ago.

Although large, the gains are likely only having a small impact on the economy, economists say. In a survey of 53 economists conducted by USA TODAY Oct. 18-24, 88% said high oil prices were having a “minor impact” on the economy.

Sean Snaith, director of the Institute for Economic Competitiveness at the University of Central Florida, says although rising energy costs mean consumers should have less spending money for non-energy goods, so far they largely have kept spending.

Other economists, including Jeff Thredgold of Thredgold Economic Associates, note that the economy is less energy-dependent than it was a few decades ago, reducing the blow from higher prices. Others, such as Michael Englund of Action Economics, point out that the energy sector gains from higher prices, helping to offset the harm to other parts of the economy.

Gasoline prices are also rising. Monday, the nationwide average price of a gallon of regular gasoline was $2.872, up 5 cents from a week earlier and 65 cents higher than a year ago, according to the EIA. The government has predicted record heating costs this winter, a further drain on consumer budgets.

Oil will likely be a key topic on the agenda as Federal Reserve policymakers begin their two-day meeting to discuss interest rates today. The Fed is expected to cut its target for interest rates Wednesday, according to a futures market in which participants bet on future Fed moves.

Higher oil prices might boost the prospects for a rate cut. Before becoming chairman of the Fed, Ben Bernanke jointly wrote a paper that said oil-price shocks were not the cause of economic downturns — it was the Fed’s reaction to the shocks, by way of higher interest rates to stem the potential inflationary impact, that caused the economy problems.

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