The cost of filling up is going up again. The national average price for a gallon of regular gas jumped 4 cents on Tuesday to $3.64, according to AAA. It’s the biggest daily increase since June 7, 2022, CNN reports. Despite this week’s surge, gas prices remain sharply lower compared to last summer when they jumped above $5 a gallon. Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, blames the latest price jump on production cuts by OPEC and Russia and the extreme heat. Refinery operations in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere have been hampered by record high temperatures.
By Rob Sacks, Editor at LinkedIn News
Gas prices may jump as much as 25 cents this week in some states
- GasBuddy: Prices could jump as much as 25 cents a gallon in some states
- Gas stations in the Upper Midwest, Florida are already seeing prices rise
- The spike in prices is due to the increase in the price of crude oil
According to Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis, the national average price for a gallon of gasoline could rise five to 10 cents this week and increase as high as 10 to 25 cents a gallon in some states.
The average price for a gallon of gas is $3.63 as of Tuesday, three cents higher than last week. It’s also 88 cents less than a year ago, according to AAA.
Gas stations in the Upper Midwest and Florida have started raising prices, De Haan said.
The main culprit for the spike in gas prices is the increase in the price of crude oil, and that price is reflected in what consumers are seeing at the pump.
Currently, the states, not including Hawaii and Alaska, with the most expensive gas are:
- Washington
- California
- Oregon
- Nevada
- Utah
The Dow Jones Market Data reports benchmark contracts for August deliveries of gasoline rose in 14 of the past 18 trading sessions, reflecting crude prices that have steadily climbed in recent weeks, according to The Wall Street Journal.
BY: Brooke Shafer, NEWSNATION
Gasoline prices at the pump are starting to climb as refinery outages threaten supplies, and drivers could see prices spikes by 10% or more before the summer’s over.
There have been heat-related outages at several refineries in Texas, said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. Typically, these outages are short, but the “heat dome is expected to stay in place for another few days so outages could drag on, limiting supply of gasoline at a time when inventories are at their lowest July level since 2015.”
In short order, gasoline prices at the pump may reach the highest price of the year —- $3.66 a gallon, said De Haan, adding that prices may even head to $3.75 or so.At this point, he said he’d “hate to see a hurricane now come in and further impact refinery [operations].”
If there is a “perfect storm” or Atlantic hurricane, “there’s a strong chance we could get to $4, or even $4.25 a gallon for a national average” gasoline price, said De Haan.