The nation’s average gasoline price soared 16.5 cents in the last week to $3.72 per gallon, according to GasBuddy. The national average diesel price jumped 15.5 cents last week, reaching $3.99 per gallon.
GasBuddy’s Patrick De Haan says, “Prices suddenly soared over the last week due to heat-related refinery outages that impacted some of the largest refineries in the country.” The outages come at a time when summer gasoline demand peaks and as gasoline inventories slid to their lowest July level since 2015. Average gasoline and diesel prices are rising at the fastest pace in over a year, but the rise seen in the last week should now start slowing.
As we get closer to the peak of hurricane season, any new issues could easily push the national average over $4 per gallon for the first time in 2023, according to De Haan. U.S. retail gasoline demand saw a 0.9 percent fall last week, potentially having peaked for the summer as August brings the return to school for millions.