China sees long lines at the gas pump as Mideast turmoil hits

Panicked drivers lined up in long queues outside gas stations across China Monday after receiving an alert from Chinese oil giant Sinopec about a pending price hike. The state refiner issued a notice Sunday that the price of gas will be set higher by a “meaningful” amount starting March 24. “As soon as I got the notice, I ran out to fill my tank!,” Zhou Ping, a Beijing resident, said while waiting in her car at a gas station downtown. Prices were tipped to go up to 2,205 yuan per metric ton – the equivalent of about $1 per gallon….