Mother Nature might not be just yet, but many refinery planners are turning their attention toward spring.
Refineries are beginning to transition to summer fuel blends, which according to AAA East Central, often results in higher gas prices.
Bradford’s average at $3.599 is as usual higher than the statewide average, which was up about one half a cent this week to $3.36 Monday. That remains 19.1 cents less than last year but 2.7 cents more than last month.
In Western Pennsylvania, prices are up a penny to $3.543. In Brookville this week, gas averaged $3.388, while it was $3.503 in DuBois, $3.567 in Erie and $3.599 in Warren.
The most and least expensive stations varied by $1.20 this week, from $2.79 to as much as $3.99.
Nationally, the average price of diesel increased 0.8 cents in the last week to stand at $3.632 per gallon Monday. Gasoline prices rose 2.2 cents per gallon to $3.11 — unchanged from a month ago but still 16.5 cents less than a year ago, according to GasBuddy.com’s compilation of more than 11 million weekly price reports covering over 150,000 gas stations.
“The national average has inched higher, driven primarily by sharp gas price increases on the West Coast, where refinery maintenance and outages have created a ripple effect in neighboring states, pushing prices higher in many communities,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “While most of the country has experienced a relatively quiet week for gas prices, the West Coast has seen rapid increases — a trend that should slow in the coming days. Although the surge remains isolated to the West for now, refinery maintenance will soon begin in other regions, and with the transition to summer gasoline blends underway, prices in most areas are likely to start rising in the weeks ahead.
“Meanwhile, oil prices remain subdued in the low $70s as President Trump works on a potential peace deal between Russia and Ukraine — an event that, if realized, could have significant implications for oil markets in the months ahead.”
Back in 2016, a gallon of gas cost an average of $1.91 in Pennsylvania and, nationwide, motorists paid an average of $1.71. Averages in 2022 remain the highest over the last 10 years, at $3.71 across the state and $3.51 nationwide.
According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gasoline demand increased from 8.32 million barrels per day last week to 8.57. Total domestic gasoline supply dropped from 251.1 million barrels to 248.1, while gasoline production increased last week, averaging 9.3 million barrels daily.
At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate dropped $1.95 to settle at $71.37 a barrel. The EIA reports that crude oil inventories increased by 4.1 million barrels from the previous week. At 427.9 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about 4% below the five-year average for this time of year.
Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide and countywide at gasprices.aaa.com.
