The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Riverside County rose 3.3 cents Sunday to $5.482, its highest amount since Oct. 20, 2023.
The average price has risen 45 of the past 46 days, increasing $1.341, including 9.5 cents Saturday, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. The average price is 37.8 cents more than one week ago, $1.022 more than one month ago and 99.9 cents more than one year ago. Despite the recent increases, it is 89.1 cents less than the record $6.373 set on Oct. 5, 2022.
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.
“Oil prices spiked over $100 a barrel on Monday and continue to be volatile as this conflict continues,” Kandace Redd, the Automobile Club of Southern California’s senior public affairs specialist, said in a statement Thursday. “California has experienced much higher price increases than other states because the majority of the state’s gasoline is refined from foreign crude oil sources.”
The national average price rose 2.4 cents to $3.699, its highest amount since Oct. 9, 2023. It has risen for 15 consecutive days, increasing 71.7 cents, including 4.5 cents Saturday. The national average price is 24.9 cents more than one week ago, 77.2 cents more than one month ago and 62 cents more than one year ago. It is $1.317 less than the record $5.016 set on June 14, 2022.
“Crude oil prices play a major role in what drivers pay at the pump, and prices have surpassed the $100/barrel mark multiple times in recent days,” the AAA said Thursday. “To help offset rising prices, the U.S. announced it will release 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserves over four months. The move is part of a broader effort by the International Energy Agency to release a total of 400 million barrels of oil, the largest emergency release in its history.”