Gasoline Prices Continue March to $4 Everywhere

The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in the US is now $3.864 according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). According to gasbuddy.com, a gallon of regular gasoline now costs $3.841. A year ago, AAA reported a price of $3.547/gallon, compared with gasbuddy’s $3.533/gallon. Close enough to be a consensus.

California boasts the most expensive gasoline in the US according to AAA, at $4.348/gallon, while West Coast neighbors Oregon and Washington average $4.016 and $4.031, respectively. Most of the gasoline in these states is refined from crude oil that arrives by ship from Alaska’s North Slope fields. That contributes to the high prices, though demand in California also plays a big role.

The average price in Illinois is $4.189/gallon, with Indiana and Michigan both a penny or so below $4/gallon. New York and Connecticut are the two East Coast states where regular gasoline costs more than $4.00 gallon: New York’s average is $4.031 and Connecticut’s is $4.033. The average price in the District of Columbia is $4.116. Alaska and Hawaii are the only other states with average prices above $4/gallon.

The inexorable march to a US average of $4/gallon has lost a little speed over the last few days, but there’s little reason to believe that we won’t be there by the end of April. Both AAA and gasbuddy show prices have risen by $0.30/gallon in the past month. The only good thing is that the relatively slow rise in prices has given Americans a chance to adjust better to the increases. And we’ve been at $4/gallon before and survived. The real problems start as the whole country marches toward $5/gallon.

Paul Ausick