AAA: Crude oil reaches six-week high
Prices at the pump surpassed the record annual average price established in 2011 ($3.51 gal) this week and have done so in record time.
In 2008, the year that saw the all-time high price for regular self-service gasoline ($4.11 gal) the $3.50 per gallon mark wasn’t topped until April 21. Last year, gasoline prices didn’t surpass $3.50 per gallon until March 8. This year, gasoline topped $3.50 per gallon on Saturday, Feb. 11. Continue reading “AAA: Crude oil reaches six-week high” »
AAA: Demand down, crude oil prices down, but prices continue upward tick
The cost of gas continued to rise to unseasonably high levels this week, despite decreases in the price of crude oil.
Reports show extremely weak gasoline demand, however refineries are responding to this decrease in demand by cutting back on production, resulting in some upward movement in prices at the pump.
Gas prices climbed to the highest price in more than four months this week, reaching $3.50 Friday, up 3 cents in the past week, up 13 cents in the past month and up 38 cents since this time last year. Yet, gas prices remain 61 cents below the all-time record high of $4.11 set in July 2008. Continue reading “AAA: Demand down, crude oil prices down, but prices continue upward tick” »
AAA: Gas prices holding steady
Gas prices for February have picked up right where they left off last month. In January, crude oil traded at record-high levels for the beginning of the year, translating to the highest gas prices ever for the month.
Gas prices averaged $3.37 per gallon nationally for the month of January, 27-cents higher per gallon than January 2011. The national average for regular grade gasoline climbed 8 this week to $3.47 per gallon Friday.
Prices are 18 cents above month ago prices and 35 cents above year ago prices, yet remain 64 cents below the all-time record high of $4.11 set three and a half years ago. Continue reading “AAA: Gas prices holding steady” »
AAA: Gas prices hold steady
Despite holding at historic highs for the month of January, gas prices have stabilized over the past few weeks, yet some wonder if this is just the calm before the storm for gas prices during the first half of the year.
The national average for regular grade gasoline inched up a penny this week to $3.39 per gallon Friday. Prices are 15 cents above month ago prices and 29 cents above year ago prices, yet remain 72 cents below the all-time record high of $4.11 set in July 2008. Continue reading “AAA: Gas prices hold steady” »
AAA: Gas prices stabilizing, still high
Three weeks into the new year gas prices stabilized somewhat, yet remain at historic highs for the month of January.
Despite U.S. demand for gasoline hovering at a multi-year low, high crude oil prices and reports of impending refinery shutdowns have fueled a 10-cent increase in the national gas price average since January 1. The national average for regular grade gasoline dropped a penny this week to $3.38 per gallon Friday. Prices are 17 cents above month ago prices and 26 cents above year ago prices, yet remain 73 cents below the all-time record high of $4.11 set three and a half years ago. Continue reading “AAA: Gas prices stabilizing, still high” »
AAA: Gas prices remain at historic highs for January
Gas prices remain at historic highs for early January, up by double-digits in many part of the country since the beginning of the year. Contributing to the increase was the repeal of the ethanol tax credit, causing gas prices to increase nearly 4.5 cents per gallon.
The national average for regular grade rose 4 cents this week (11 cents since January 1) to $3.39 per gallon Friday. Prices are 13 cents above month ago prices and 29 cents above year ago prices, yet remain 72 cents below the all-time record high of $4.11 set three and a half years ago. Continue reading “AAA: Gas prices remain at historic highs for January” »
AAA: Gas prices highest ever to start a new year
Average U.S. gasoline prices began 2012 just under $3.28 gal, the highest number ever to mark the beginning of a year and the fifth straight weekly increase in price.
Last year’s $3.07 per gallon high is now relegated to second place. The U.S. average price for regular self-service gasoline was $3.51 in 2011, the highest annual number of all time, and more than twice the price average seen in the first four years of the century. The national average for regular grade rose 8 cents this week to $3.35 per gallon Friday. Prices are 6 cents below month ago prices and 27 cents above year ago prices, yet remain 76 cents below the all-time record high of $4.11 set in July 2008. Continue reading “AAA: Gas prices highest ever to start a new year” »
AAA: Gas prices in 2011 highest ever
Motorists across the nation and in Virginia will have paid more, on average, for a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in 2011 than ever before. With just three days left in the year, the national average price for gas in 2011 is close to $3.52 per gallon ,with Virginia’s average through today at a record high $3.41.
“As analysts look at everything from economic indicators and global developments to the most popular movies and photos of the year, motorists simply look at how they will continue to put gas in their cars in 2012,” said Martha Mitchell Meade, Manager of Public and Government Affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic. “The average family in Virginia is predicted to have spent $4,544 on gas in 2011 as compared to $3,713 in 2010, an increase of $841 in just one year.”
While gas prices for the year are high, they have been dropping fairly steadily as the year draws to a close. Gas prices today in Virginia are 18 cents lower than they were on Nov. 1. Nationally prices are now 21 cents lower than the beginning of November.
Analyst Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service, predicts that current lower prices will continue through the year’s end and into January when they will likely hit their lowest when demand is typically low. Kloza, however, predicts that prices could go up a full $1.00 from the lows in January as we head towards spring.
AAA: Gas prices highest ever at Christmas
The cost of gas is the lump of coal in motorists’ Christmas stockings this year, and although pump prices have declined of recent, consumers will still end up paying the highest ever price for gas at Christmas in history. The national average for regular grade dropped 4 cents from last week to $3.25 per gallon Friday. Prices are 15 cents below month ago prices. Just before Christmas 2010, the average price was $2.98 (27 cents lower) and $2.59 (66 cents lower) per gallon two Christmases ago in 2009.
Crude oil plunged to its lowest level in six weeks this week as industrial production declined for the first time since April in the U.S., the world’s largest oil-consuming country, and the strength of the U.S. dollar against the euro as the euro region’s ability to manage its debt troubles mounted. A strong U.S. dollar will suppress crude oil prices. Prices are down 5.3 percent since December 9, heading for a second weekly decline and the biggest since September 23. Crude is 3.1 percent higher this year after climbing 15 percent in 2010. Some analysts cautioned there could be further losses in store for crude, which would help to push gas prices further down. Crude oil closed down for the second straight week at $93.53 Friday. Continue reading “AAA: Gas prices highest ever at Christmas” »
Gas prices continue spike
Ten-plus cents more – that’s how much more you’re paying for gas than you were a week ago.
“Prices are changing so rapidly, and filling station attendants are switching the price signs so quickly that it is causing the heads of consumers to spin. They are bewildered, upset, and alarmed by the sheer rapidity and velocity of rising gasoline prices,” said Martha M. Meade, AAA Mid-Atlantic’s manager of public and government affairs.
The increase over the past week is the second largest one-week increase in gas prices since 1990. Across the nation, the price of a gallon of unleaded regular soared to $3.39, compared to $3.19 a week ago today. Week-over-week, that’s a 20-cent increase in the national retail price average.
It’s now $3.29 a gallon in the Commonwealth, compared to $3.18 a week ago.
Expect prices to increase even more, soon. The upheaval at the pumps is occurring just as demand is increasing and as refiners are jump-starting the switchover from blending winter gasoline blends to costlier summer gasoline blends, in advance of the summer driving season. That alone would cause pump prices to increase.
Why are prices escalating so rapidly? Motorists are now paying a “panic premium” for their fuel purchases, Meade said, with uncertainty over political unrest in the Middle East pushing the panic button. Potential unrest is brewing from Oman (which produces 900,000 barrels a day) to Algeria (with a daily output of 1.3 million barrels a day). The spreading turmoil and disintegration could have the most profound impact on the chain of standing dominoes: Iran and Saudi Arabia, some traders fear. With an output of 3.7 million barrels a day, Iran is OPEC’s second-largest oil producer and the fourth-largest crude oil exporter in the world. There’s even anxiety and hand-wringing about Saudi Arabia, the biggest domino of all, which boasts one-fifth of the world’s proven oil reserves, with 9 million barrels a day.
Edited by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at freepress2@ntelos.net.
Huge gas-price jump overnight
A quick news blurb courtesy AAA Mid-Atlantic: Gas prices hurtled overnight, up an average of six cents a gallon from Thursday.
The average price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Virginia went from $3.10 on Thursday to $3.16 this morning. A month ago today a gallon of regular unleaded in Virginia cost $3.02. A year ago, a gallon cost $2.59, according to AAA.
The one-day jump illustrates the correlation between pump prices and crude oil prices, AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesperson Windy Van Curen said.
“Although price jumps of this magnitude are highly unusual, when crude oil prices escalate as quickly as they have, this becomes more common and could become a pattern in the coming days,” Van Curen said.
Story by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at freepress2@ntelos.net.
Gas back to $3 a gallon mark in Virginia
If you haven’t already had to pay $3 a gallon or more at the pumps, get ready. The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded has hit the $3 mark statewide.
“This is the time of year when prices are typically at their lowest. It makes us wonder just how high prices will go in 2011,” AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesperson Martha Meade said Monday.
A gallon of regular unleaded cost Virginians on average $2.65 a year ago at this time. But prices have been steadily rising in recent weeks, following a national trend. The nationwide average hit $3 a gallon on Dec. 22.
Higher crude-oil prices and increased demand with the ongoing economic recovery are at the root of the spike in prices at the pump. Which means prices are only going to continue to see upward pressure as the recovery continues to take hold.
Crude oil closed at $88.03 a barrel on Friday. Analysts expect that price to pass the $100 mark at some point in 2011.
“The question on everyone’s mind is will we see pump prices rally to their second highest level in recorded history this spring,” Meade said. “Some market watchers and analysts fear this will be the case.”
Story by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at freepress2@ntelos.net.
