Gas Price Spikes Hit Illinois Hardest
The national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas rose just a penny the past week to $2.74, but that was enough to make it the most expensive it’s been all year, according to Thursday’s AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.
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But motorists in Illinois saw pump prices jump almost daily because of reduced output at two Chicago-area refineries.
In Illinois, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded shot up 12 cents the past week and 27 cents over the past two weeks to $2.97. The Chicago metro area, where higher taxes mean higher pump prices, was hit the hardest. Regular unleaded climbed 21 cents the past week to $3.25 in Chicago and nearby suburbs. Cars.com Managing Editor David Thomas saw prices at his local station spike 16 cents overnight before Memorial Day weekend; they held at $3.25 for the week.
Elsewhere, gas prices leveled off and even started to fall in some states following the holiday weekend. In California, for example, the statewide average fell 5 cents to $3.74, following a 1-cent decline the previous week. Californians were socked by higher prices for several weeks because gas production fell at two refineries there, giving the Golden State the highest prices in the country.
With production now closer to normal levels, motorists are paying less at the pump. In the Los Angeles area, the average price for regular unleaded was $4 two weeks ago but now is $3.91, though that is still highest among metro areas. Other Western states also have had significant price increases in recent weeks, and Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Washington state all average more than $3 for a gallon of regular unleaded.
Prices also topped $3 in Alaska and Hawaii.
The Midwest, particularly Illinois, is the current hot spot for price increases. AAA said an ExxonMobil refinery in Joliet, Ill., continues to operate at reduced production levels, and a Citgo refinery in Lemont, Ill., is undergoing maintenance work, further reducing the supply of gas and potentially bumping up prices.
Gas was cheapest in South Carolina at a statewide average of $2.44, with Mississippi and Oklahoma close behind at $2.45.
AAA said volatile global oil prices and tensions in the Middle East that pose risks to oil production make it hard to predict which way oil prices will go.
Though gas prices are at a high point for the calendar year, motorists are still paying less at this time of year than they have in recent years.
During the previous three years, the national average for a gallon of regular unleaded was around $3.65 in late May. One year ago, premium was $4.01, or 88 cents higher than now. At $2.89, the national average for diesel fuel is $1.03 less than on May 28, 2014.
