The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Riverside County shot up 17.3 cents Saturday to $5.063, its largest one-day increase since Oct. 5, 2012.
The average price has risen 37 of the past 38 days, including 11.9 cents Friday, and is the highest it’s been since May 21, 2024. Prices were rising slightly in line with seasonal norms before the joint U.S./Israel attack on Iran on Feb. 28 sent oil prices higher and drastically accelerated increases at the gas pump.
The average price is 51.2 cents more than one week ago, 73.3 cents more than one month ago and 49.6 cents more than one year ago, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. It has dropped $1.31 since rising to a record $6.373 on Oct. 5, 2022.
“It’s unknown how long these price spikes will last or how high prices will climb — that will all depend on how long oil supplies remain disrupted,” Kandace Redd, the Automobile Club of Southern California’s senior public affairs specialist, said in a statement released Thursday. “Oil prices have increased by about $10 a barrel since last weekend,” she added.
The national average price rose 9.3 cents to $3.413, its highest amount since Aug. 18, 2024. The national average price is 43.1 cents more than one week ago, 51.5 cents more than one month ago and 30.7 cents more than one year ago. It has dropped $1.603 since rising to a record $5.016 on June 14, 2022.
“The conflict in the Middle East has sent crude oil prices higher to the mid $70/barrel range … Springtime typically sees higher gas prices as gasoline demand rises and summer-blend gasoline production begins. The last time the national average made a similar weekly jump was back in March of 2022 during the start of the Russia/Ukraine conflict,” the AAA said Thursday.