Once again, $3 a gallon regular gas appeared only briefly in Delaware as Middle East piracy took its toll and cruse prices rose, AAA reported.
The price at the pump on Thursday was up nearly a dime from a week ago when the figure for regular was under $3 a gallon. Nationwide, it was the first increase in gas prices since September.
In Delaware, membership clubs, Costco, BJ’s and Sam’s kept the price of regular below $2.90 a gallon, with price leaders Royal Farms, Wawa and branded stations, posting $3.10 at many locations.
Delaware had the fourth biggest jump in gas prices, perhaps due to the pricing power of convenience store chains. Also, refineries in the state often run crude from overseas and are affected by international issues.
On Friday, crude was selling at around $73.50 a barrel, down slightly from mid-week. Oil prices rose this week due to attacks on tankers in the Red Sea, leading to re-routing vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, which will increase transportation costs. Still, the EIA reported that total domestic commercial crude inventories rose by nearly 3 million bbl to 443.7 million barrels last week.
| Timeframe | Regular | Mid-Grade | Premium | Diesel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current Avg. | $3.066 | $3.579 | $3.878 | $3.994 |
| Yesterday Avg. | $3.071 | $3.580 | $3.870 | $3.989 |
| Week Ago Avg. | $2.966 | $3.476 | $3.771 | $3.980 |
| Month Ago Avg. | $3.173 | $3.685 | $3.954 | $4.074 |
| Year Ago Avg. | $2.983 | $3.455 | $3.746 | $4.803 |
“Daily gas prices will likely move back and forth for the next month or so. Looking back at pre-pandemic 2019, the national average did not make a firm turn to moving higher daily until Valentine’s Day, February 14,” said auto club spokesman Andrew Gross
According to new data from the Energy Information Administration, gas demand dipped slightly from 8.86 to 8.75 million barrels a day last week.
With drivers heading to their holiday destinations, they may continue to see prices fluctuate slightly during the year-end travel season.
Since last Thursday, these 10 states have seen the largest changes in their price averages: Florida (+16 cents), Texas (+11 cents), Idaho (−10 cents), Delaware (+9 cents), South Carolina (+9 cents), Illinois (−9 cents), Nevada (−8 cents), California (−8 cents), Colorado (+7 cents) and West Virginia (−7 cents).
