The national average for a gallon of gas has surged to $3.44, the highest average price since 2014, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). The new average is 14 cents more than it was a month ago and 98 cents more than it was a year ago.
In Tennessee, the average price for a gallon of gas is below the national average at $3.15. Despite being below the national average, Tennessee’s average remains the highest in the state since 2014.
The nation’s top 10 most expensive markets of price per gallon, according to the AAA, include: California ($4.68), Hawaii ($4.40), Washington ($3.95), Oregon ($3.93), Nevada ($3.86), Alaska ($3.78), Arizona ($3.64), Washington, D.C. ($3.62), Illinois ($3.61), and Pennsylvania ($3.61).
The nation’s top 10 largest weekly increases for the price of a gallon, according to the AAA, include: Michigan (+15 cents), Ohio (+14 cents), Florida (+12 cents), Indiana (+11 cents), Minnesota (+11 cents), Delaware (+11 cents), Maryland (+10 cents), Illinois (+9 cents), Wisconsin (+9 cents), and Kansas (+9 cents).
One year ago, the national average for a gallon of gas was $2.46. In Tennessee, the average was $2.24 at the time.
In addition to higher prices at the pump, “blustery winter weather and geopolitical tensions” are helping to drive the price of oil higher, which is in the low-$90s per barrel, nearly $30 more than in August, according to the nonprofit organization. The recent cold weather in the U.S. increased the demand for heating oil. Meanwhile, as noted by the AAA, the concern that Russia will react to potential western sanctions by withholding crude oil from the already tight global market puts heavy upward pressure on prices.
“This shows how events on the other side of the globe can have a noticeable impact right here in the U.S.,” Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson said in a statement. “And unfortunately for drivers, they are reminded of this by higher prices at the pump.”
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]
just think what prices would be without democrats in ‘charge’.
#LetsGoBrandon
Just think, prices should be 12 cents a gallon less but for the scam called IMPROVE Act.