The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in San Diego County resumed increasing Tuesday, rising 2 cents to $4.776, one day after a run of 15 increases in 16 days ended when it dropped three-tenths of a cent.
The average price is 6.9 cents more than one week ago, 11.2 cents higher than one month ago and 7.7 cents greater than what it was one year ago, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. It has dropped $1.659 since rising to a record $6.435 on Oct. 5, 2022.
The national average price rose for the seventh consecutive day, increasing 2.9 cents to $3.225. It has risen 8 cents over the past seven days, including seven-tenths of a cent Monday.
The national average price is 15.4 cents more than one month ago but 19.1 cents less than one year ago. It has dropped $1.791 since rising to a record $5.016 on June 14, 2022.
"We've seen the national average price of gasoline inching higher now for three straight weeks, but I'm afraid the worst is yet to come," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, which provides real- time gas price information from more than 150,000 stations.
"With several major refinery issues persisting across various regions, the eventual transition to summer gasoline is likely to continue to put upward pressure on prices, with larger weekly increases likely coming in March and April.
"While I feel optimistic that the rise in prices will be merely average, the fact that we've already seen a few high-level refinery problems doesn't bode well for the spring squeeze, and is a reminder to motorists that without the critical role that refineries play, we could see a bumpy transition to EPA-mandated summer gasoline."
