Motorists who are gassing up ahead of the Halloween weekend will find frightful prices at the pump. Even though gas prices rose more slowly this week than last, they remain at a seven-year high.
AAA reports that the national average price of regular gas is $3.40 a gallon, three cents higher than last week. A year ago, consumers were paying $2.15 a gallon. The average price of premium gas is $4.01 a gallon, four cents higher than last week. The average price of diesel fuel is $3.62 a gallon, also four cents a gallon higher than a week ago.
According to AAA, gas prices have gone up every day for the last month. There may be little relief until fuel supplies catch up with demand
“With the U.S. economy slowly recovering from the depths of the pandemic, demand for gas is robust, but the supply is tight,” said Andrew Gross, AAA’s spokesperson. “We haven’t seen prices this high since September of 2014.”
Even though the average price of gasoline is higher this week, some states saw little to no increase from the prior week. The exceptions are Missouri, where the average price jumped seven cents a gallon, and Hawaii and Mississippi, where the average price at the pump is up six cents a gallon in the last seven days.
States with the most expensive gas
These states currently have the highest prices for regular gas, according to AAA:
California ($4.58)
Hawaii ($4.30)
Nevada ($3.93)
Washington ($3.88)
Oregon ($3.79)
Alaska ($3.72)
Utah ($3.74)
Idaho ($3.71)
Illinois ($3.57)
Pennsylvania ($3.57)
States with the cheapest gas
AAA reports these states currently have the lowest prices for regular gas:
Oklahoma ($3.02)
Texas ($3.05)
Arkansas ($3.06)
Mississippi ($3.09)
Kansas ($3.11)
Kentucky ($3.11)
Missouri ($3.12)
Wisconsin ($3.14)
Minnesota ($3.15)
Louisiana ($3.16)