The average U.S. price of a gallon of regular-grade gasoline spiked 10 cents over the past two weeks to $3.64 per gallon (3.8 liters).
Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey said that the price jump came after a rise in crude oil costs amid global supply concerns following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Lundberg said further increases are likely.
The price at the pump is about a dollar higher than it was a year ago.
Nationwide, the highest average price for regular-grade gas is in the San Francisco Bay Area, at $4.86 per gallon.
The lowest average is in Houston, at $3.14 per gallon.
According to the survey, the average price of diesel is $4.02 a gallon, up 12 cents over two weeks.
Some are speculating that rising gas prices will continue to funnel profits into Russia, as government sanctions are tailored towards allowing ease of energy.
These politics have produced a set of sanctions that Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., on Thursday said he fears “will be inadequate to deter Putin from further aggression.”
“The administration is intentionally leaving the biggest industry in Russia’s economy virtually untouched,” Toomey said. “The sanctions imposed on Russian banks, while welcome, may not isolate the Russian financial system from international activity. That’s why the U.S. should impose crippling sanctions on Russia’s oil and gas sector.”
According to Marshall Billingslea, who helped set sanctions policy for the Trump administration, sanctions enforcement is a tricky game:
“Sanctions enforcement is inherently a cat and mouse game and they’ve had eight years, ever since Crimea, to set up alternative mechanisms to keep hard currency flowing to the regime,” Billingslea said.
Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press
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