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AAA: Pennsylvania Gas Prices Continue to Rise

After increasing by 13 cents last week, the average price of gasoline across Western Pennsylvania is another two cents higher this week at $2.967 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                  $2.967
Average price during the week of February 22, 2021                                $2.940
Average price during the week of March 3, 2020                                       $2.662

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$2.992      Altoona
$2.999      Beaver
$2.999      Bradford
$2.987      Brookville
$2.968      Butler
$2.973      Clarion
$2.972      DuBois
$2.984      Erie
$2.865      Greensburg
$2.998      Indiana
$2.902      Jeannette
$2.985      Kittanning
$2.925      Latrobe
$2.985      Meadville
$2.972      Mercer
$2.888      New Castle
$2.990      New Kensington
$2.996      Oil City
$2.966      Pittsburgh
$2.955      Sharon
$2.985      Uniontown
$2.999      Warren
$2.958      Washington

Trend Analysis:
Gas prices continue to increase, with the national average up nine cents on the week to $2.72. That is a 30 cent increase from the beginning of February, 28 cents more than a year ago and the most expensive daily national average since August 2019.

The latest price jumps are a direct result of February’s winter storm that took 26 U.S. refineries offline and pushed refinery utilization from an average of about 83% down to an atypical low of 68%, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). In its latest data, EIA also reported demand at 7.2 million barrels per day. Both utilization and demand rates have not been reported this low since last May.

AAA forecasts the national gas price average to increase in March. However, if refineries resume normal operations, and if crude oil prices show signs of stability, motorists may see some relief at the pump towards the end of the month.

At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate decreased by $2.03 to settle at $61.50. Crude prices rose mid-week despite the EIA’s latest report revealing that total domestic crude inventories increased by 1.3 million barrels last week, bringing the supply level to 463 million barrels. For this week, crude prices could rise if the EIA’s next weekly report shows a decrease in total stocks.

Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.