AAA: Gas Prices Soar in Western PA; Crude Prices Fluctuate Amid Geopolitical Tensions

AAA: Gas Prices Soar in Western PA; Crude Prices Fluctuate Amid Geopolitical Tensions
Gas prices are 11 cents higher in Western Pennsylvania this week at $3.739 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                $3.739
Average price during the week of February 16, 2022                              $3.629
Average price during the week of February 22, 2021                              $2.940

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

$3.755      Altoona
$3.685      Beaver
$3.755      Bradford
$3.727      Brookville
$3.694      Butler
$3.738      Clarion
$3.670      DuBois
$3.738      Erie
$3.606      Greensburg
$3.698      Indiana
$3.686      Jeannette
$3.609      Kittanning
$3.640      Latrobe
$3.754      Meadville
$3.769      Mercer
$3.563      New Castle
$3.681      New Kensington
$3.759      Oil City
$3.675      Pittsburgh

$3.664      Sharon
$3.698      Uniontown
$3.757      Warren
$3.635      Washington

Trend Analysis:

The potential invasion of Ukraine by Russia is having a rippling effect on the oil market, which in turn will impact the price of gasoline in the U.S. The national average for a gallon of gas has risen to $3.53, four cents more than a week ago, 21 cents more than a month ago and 90 cents more than a year ago.

A Russian attack would be met by severe financial sanctions led by the United States and its allies. Russia could retaliate by withholding oil from the world market, which is already dealing with tight supplies as countries loosen COVID restrictions. Russia is one of the leading oil producers globally, behind only the United States and Saudi Arabia.

According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 1.3 million barrels to 247.1 million barrels last week. On the other hand, gasoline demand fell from 9.13 million barrels per day to 8.57 million barrels per day. Typically, a decrease in gas demand during the winter would put downward pressure on pump prices, but elevated crude prices continue to push pump prices higher.

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

AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 72 local offices in Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia serving 2.7 million members.  News releases are available at news.eastcentral.aaa.com.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.