Gasoline Prices Tick Higher

By Trey Thoelcke Published Oct 3, 6:56AM EDT

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The drop in gasoline prices is over for now. The average per-gallon price of regular nationwide, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge, was $3.782, compared to $3.780 the day before and $3.805 a month ago.

Given the drop in oil prices, gas prices logically should have fallen more. But concerns about supply, the instability of Iran and OPEC’s plans for early next year have kept prices high. Refinery activity in the United States may play a part as well. The problem is worse than its seems, when several of the most populous states are taken into account. Prices are above $4 in California, Connecticut and New York, and just below that level in Michigan, Illinois and Massachusetts.

If the fiscal cliff is reached, these gas prices could be the last straw to break the back of consumer spending.

Douglas A. McIntyre

About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.