Complain about a product or service

Consumers Pay $3.22 a Gallon as Gas Prices Shoot Up

Nationwide average diesel price hits new record

By Joe Benton
ConsumerAffairs.com

March 10, 2008

• Latest Gas Price Round-Up • Gas Prices Headed Up Again • Truckers Bemoan Burden of High Diesel Costs • Gas Prices Biting into Worker Productivity • Consumers Warned About Gas-Saving Schemes • Is Tony Soprano Controlling Gas Prices? • Oil & Gas: The New Bubble • Critics: New Federal Gas Mileage Standard Falls Short • Consumers Feeling Pain of Skyrocketing Gas Prices • New Gas Price Record Forecasts Expensive Summer Driving Season --- • More ...

The price consumers pay for gasoline set new records in 20 states over the weekend as the average price throughout the country rose to $3.222 a gallon, 69 cents higher than one year ago.

The existing record price is $3.227 set May 24, 2007.

Gasoline prices are now above the $3 mark an all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Mid-grade gasoline sells for $3.42 a gallon and premium sells for $3.54.

A gallon of diesel fuel sells for $3.83, an all-time high in the U.S.

With U.S. gas price on the verge of setting a record price even when adjusted for inflation, oil prices rose to $107 a barrel. That is the fifth new high in the last six sessions of oil trading, suggesting even higher pump prices for U.S. consumers.

The U.S. Energy Department estimates gasoline prices will peak around $3.40 a gallon this spring.

Oil industry analyst Trilby Lundberg is not so optimistic. She suggests the sharp rise in gasoline prices is because refiners are now passing the higher costs of crude oil along to consumers.

Lundberg said prices will continue up 20 to 30 cents per gallon in the next month as refiners continue to pass along to consumers their higher costs for crude oil.

That would mean a price peak at $3.52 a gallon

"Should prices indeed rise 20 to 30 cents, they would vastly exceed previous prices on an inflation-adjusted basis," Lundberg said.

“Refiner profit margins have become so slim that they will now raise prices to recover their lost margins," Lundberg said.

Here is a look at some gasoline prices from across the country.

California: Diesel prices have hit an average of $4.01 in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The rising price of diesel hits every consumers form truck drivers in the state hybrid car owners paying more for groceries and other supplies that truckers deliver.

The average diesel price in the San Jose area has jumped 8 cents since Friday, from $3.93 a gallon.

The average price of a gallon of gas hit $3.56 over the weekend in California and $3.59 in Silicon Valley, both records prices, according to the Automobile Club of California.

Texas: Gas prices are rising across the state, averaging $3.12.

Consumers in Houston are paying a penny more at $3.13, a record high.

At the same time last year regular self serve gasoline cost consumers in Texas $2.40 per gallon. Prices averaged about $2.86 one month ago.

Diesel is also selling for record high prices in Texas. A gallon costs an average of $3.76.

Virginia: Drivers across the state are paying record prices for gasoline.

AAA Mid-Atlantic reports the average price of regular gasoline hit $3.15 per gallon over the weekend.

AAA attributes record crude and gas prices to the weak dollar, a drop in U.S. oil inventories and OPEC's decision last week to hold output steady rather than increase it.

AAA also points out that gasoline prices normally begin climbing in the spring as refineries make the switch from producing winter gasoline blends to an assortment of summer gasoline blends.

Florida: Florida gasoline prices have reached record levels, averaging $3.27 a gallon for self-serve regular, up 25 cents from a month ago.

In Fort Lauderdale, self-serve regular currently averages $3.30, up from $3.02 a month ago. In Miami, consumer pay $3.34, up from $3.05 a month ago, and in West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, the price is $3.36, up from $3.12 a month ago.

Randy Bly, director of community relations for AAA Auto Club South, said the surge in prices is due to two factors: the annual spring gasoline price ramp-up and a U.S. dollar that is substantially devalued against the euro, which encourages the rally on crude oil to continue.

Michigan: Gasoline prices are up 19 cents during the past week.

AAA Michigan says the statewide average is $3.28 per gallon. That's 74 cents higher than last year at this time.

The highest price is in Grand Rapids and Saginaw/Bay City, where a gallon of regular costs $3.33. The cheapest price is in the Detroit area, where it costs $3.23.

Ohio: Ohio gasoline prices are sharply higher. The average price for a gallon of regular gas around Ohio is about $3.25, up 18 cents in just one week.

The switch over the weekend to daylight saving time isn't helping either.

Analysts predict that prices will go even higher, maybe 30 to 40 cents, as consumers drive more because there are more daylight hours.

Report Your Experience
If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.

Back to the top |