SPOKANE, Wash. — After 14 weeks of steady declines, gas prices in Spokane went up nearly 25 cents in one week.
Spokane's average gas prices have risen 24.5 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $4.53 per gallon as of Monday.
While gas prices have declined in some states for more than three months, gas prices in several regions have jumped amidst myriad refinery issues from the West Coast to the Great Lakes, according to Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy's head of petroleum analysis.
The national average price of gas has risen 3.2 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.67 per gallon as of Monday. The national average gas price is down 17.5 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 49.3 cents per gallon higher than a year ago.
However, gas prices in Spokane are four cents per gallon higher than a month ago and stand 92 cents per gallon higher than a year ago. The cheapest station in Spokane was priced at $4.24 per gallon as of Sunday, while the most expensive was priced at $4.99 per gallon, a difference of 75 cents.
"I don't know that I've ever seen a wider gamut of price behaviors coast to coast in my career. A slew of unexpected refinery disruptions, including fires and routine maintenance, have seemingly all happened in a short span of time, causing wholesale gas prices to spike in areas of the West Coast, Great Lakes and Plains states," De Haan said in a statement.
Some areas could see prices spike another 25-75 cents per gallon or more until issues are worked out. As Tropical Storm Ian arrives to the U.S. coast, some refiners could see limited disruption, according to De Haan.
"Hopefully, disruptions will be very limited due to Ian, but there remain many factors driving prices both up and down across the country," he added.
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