After a two-month respite, gas prices have ticked up again. The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline hit $4.328 on Monday, according to AAA, less than a penny below the all-time high of $4.331, reached on March 11.
Monday’s average represents a 20-cent jump from two weeks ago, AAA reported, and $1.36 a gallon more than this time last year.
Of course, not everyone is feeling the pinch equally: The cheapest fill up, in Georgia, is roughly $3.84 a gallon, while it’s the most expensive in California, at about $5.83 a gallon. Over the course of a year, that difference adds up to nearly $1,560 for a driver topping off their tank weekly.
Here’s what you need to know about gasoline prices, including how high they could get, what the White House is doing to keep them down and what you can do to save at the pump.
Why is gas so expensive?
The price of gas is inextricably linked to the cost of crude oil, which it’s refined from. Every $10 increase in the cost of a barrel of crude adds almost a quarter to the price of a gallon at the pump.
As part of ongoing sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine, President Joe Biden announced a ban on Russian oil imports. Even though the US doesn’t import much crude from Russia, oil is traded on a global market and any ripple affects prices all over the world.
Crude oil had been near $100 a barrel last week and is now approaching $110.
Los Angeles County saw the average price of self-serve regular gasoline pass $6 a gallon.
Zeng Hui/Getty Images
“With the cost of oil accounting for more than half of the pump price, more expensive oil means more expensive gasoline,” AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said in a statement.
The US Energy Information Administration predicts Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, will stay above $100 for the remainder of 2022.
Troy Vincent, senior market analyst at energy analysis firm DTN, says the war in Ukraine isn’t the only cause of inflated fuel prices: Demand for gas plummeted during the pandemic, causing oil producers to put the brakes on production. Even though demand is nearing pre-pandemic levels, producers are still gun-shy about increasing production.
“We’ve had a supply-and-demand imbalance for a while,” Vincent told CNET. “And it will remain, regardless of whether this conflict goes away,” he said.
Will gas prices continue to go up?
Experts don’t believe we’ve seen the end of rising prices at the pump. After gasoline futures hit record highs on Friday, Andy Lipow, a Houston-based industry consultant, told CNN he expects retail prices will climb by another 18 to 20 cents in the next two weeks.
At that rate, it would break $4.50 a gallon this month.
While that would be a new all-time record, adjusted for inflation it would still be below the 2008 peak of $4.144.
What is the government doing to lower gas prices?
In April, the Environmental Protection Agency suspended the requirement for pricier summer blends of gasoline. That allows for year-round sales of cheaper E15 gasoline, which contains a 15% ethanol blend. E15 is usually prohibited from June to September because of air quality concerns.
In late March, Biden also announced he was releasing a million barrels of oil a day from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve over the next six months. According to the White House, the unprecedented withdrawal could lower gasoline prices between 10 to 35 cents a gallon.
But insiders say it probably wouldn’t be much of a help in the long run.
“It will lower the oil price a little and encourage more demand,” Scott Sheffield, chief executive of Texas oil company Pioneer Natural Resources, told The New York Times. “But it is still a Band-Aid on a significant shortfall of supply.”
The White House continues to pressure US oil companies to increase drilling and production. Criticizing energy concerns for “sitting on” more than 12 million acres of federal land and 9,000 approved production permits, the administration would like companies to face fines if they leave wells leased from public lands unused.
There’s the option of getting energy products from other sources. The US has been working at improving relations with Venezuela, which has been banned from selling oil to the US since 2018, and is negotiating another nuclear nonproliferation treaty with Iran, which would bring Iranian oil back onto the market.
Individually, Connecticut, Maryland and Georgia have suspended state gas taxes to help consumers, and at least 20 other states are considering similar moves. A bill in Congress would pause the federal fuel tax, though it faces stiff competition.
How can consumers save at the gas station?
There’s not much we can do to change the price of gas, but drivers can cut down on unessential trips and shop around for the best price, even crossing state lines if it’s not inconvenient.
Apps like Gas Guru scan for the best gas prices in your region. Others, like FuelLog, track your car’s gas mileage and can help determine if it’s getting decent fuel economy. In addition, many gas station chains have loyalty programs, and credit cards have rewards programs that give cash back for gas purchases.
DTN’s Vincent advises against hoarding gas or other extreme measures but encourages budgeting more for gas. High energy prices have been a major contributor to inflation for a while, he said, and won’t be going away immediately.
“When the cost of crude rises, prices at the pump tend to reflect it very quickly,” he said. “But gas prices tend to linger higher longer even when crude falls.”