Yahoo Autos Gas prices: National average jumps to 2-month high
Gas prices in the U.S. are steadily rising again, leaving prospects of a $3 national average in the rearview mirror. As of Feb. 15, the national average gas price stood at $3.28 per gallon, up $0.12 from a week ago, according to AAA data.
A shutdown at the large refinery in Indiana that normally processes 435,000 barrels of crude per day has impacted prices in the Midwest and pushed up the national average.
Higher oil prices and recent drawdowns in gasoline stockpiles have also put upward pressure on fuel costs for drivers across the U.S.
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While the national average is still about $0.14 lower than a year ago, some states have have seen outsized upward movements recently. Prices at the pump jumped an average of $0.19 or more over the past week in New Mexico, West Virginia, Colorado, Maryland, Virginia, and Illinois.
The markets with the most expensive gasoline include Hawaii at $4.70 per gallon followed by California at $4.65 per gallon.
"We are in that time of year where pump prices begin to heat up, usually peaking around July," AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said recently.
"But unless something shocks the global oil market and causes prices to spike, the national average for a gallon of gas will probably stagger higher, with some flat days or even small price dips along the way."
The gasoline national average had been in a downward trend from its September 2023 peak of $3.88 per gallon. About a month ago, the average pump price hovered near a one-year low of $3.07. The last time the national average gas price fell below $3 was in May 2021.
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