Delaware gas prices rose about six cents during the week, although there were scattered signs that competition was holding down the rate of increase in one or more areas.
The average price of $2.30 in the state was not always matched by indpendents.
Such was the case in the Glasgow, an area where prices dipped a few cents below $2.30, due to competiiton from nearby Elkton, MD, an area that has seen an influx of Wawa stations.
BJ’s Wholesale Club held down prices in the New Castle and Elsmere areas, charging $2.21 or less to members.
Delaware’s low gas tax seemed to play less of a role in the price the state’s motorists pay.
For example, the gas tax in Maryland is now a dime higher than in Delaware and yet a few statations in the Free State were charging less than their counterparts across the line.
It was a similar story in south Jersey, where price at the pump was a dime more than in Delaware, even though the gas tax is nearly 25 cents a gallon higher than Delaware’s figure.
North Wilmington motorists also paid the price for being close to Pennsylvania, the state with the nation’s highest gas taxes. AAA reported that gas prices in Talleyville run a nickel more than the state average.
The overall gas price jump, typically seen toward the beginning of the summer driving season, has now shown itself in full force as families take a final vacation before school starts.
CURRENT AND PAST GAS PRICE AVERAGES
Regular Unleaded Gasoline (*indicates record high)
| 8/6/2017 | Week Ago | Year Ago | |
| National | $2.35 | $2.31 | $2.12 |
| Pennsylvania | $2.57 | $2.52 | $2.21 |
| Philadelphia (5-county) | $2.59 | $2.53 | $2.18 |
| South Jersey | $2.39 | $2.30 | $1.83 |
| Wilkes-Barre | $2.56 | $2.50 | $2.22 |
| Delaware | $2.30 | $2.24 | $1.93 |
| Crude Oil |
$49.58 per barrel |
$49.71 per barrel |
$47.40 per barrel |
U.S. crude oil prices have risen 16 percent from their ten-month low of $42.75 in late June.
Growth in U.S. oil production is slowing, but will continue to stall the Organization of Producing Exporting Countries (OPEC) efforts to cut supply and regulate global inventories.
Doubts over OPEC’s commitment to follow the agreement reached last year to curb production have caused some OPEC member countries to call for stricter production cuts in an attempt to re-balance the market. Most analysts see oil prices remaining “range bound” for the foreseeable future, stuck between roughly $45 and $55, Wilmington-based AAA Mid-Atlantic reported.
“As summer moves forward, the days of dropping summer gas prices appear to be behind us for now,” said Jana L. Tidwell, manager of Public and Government Affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic. “U.S. crude inventories are moving in the opposite direction of demand – a perfect storm for continued price increases through August.”
A forecast from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) put the average price per gallon for the summer driving season, which runs through September, at $2.38, about 7 percent, or 15 cents, higher than the average last summer.
AAA expects gas prices to extend the recent upward trend heading into Labor Day, barring a hurricane or international crisis.
To find out local gas prices, log on to AAA’s Fuel Price Finder (http://www.AAA.com/fuelfinder). The site does require that pop up blockers be removed.
