In some places in the Hawkeye State, gasoline prices have shot up more than 20-cents a gallon in the past few days. Rose White, spokeswoman for Triple-A Iowa, says crude oil prices jumped to nearly 100-dollars a barrel last week and gas prices followed suit.
White says: "The Energy Information Office reported U.S. crude oil stocks dropped three-point-nine-million barrels last week alone. Compared to last year, crude supplies are down more than 21-million barrels. High global demand coupled with tight supplies sent crude oil prices soaring in commodity markets around the globe." Triple-A says the average price for gasoline in Iowa now is $2.97 a gallon, up from $2.68 a month ago.
A year ago, the Iowa price was $2.15. The current national average is $3.00 even. White says gas prices will likely stay at this level for a while. "In this market, it’s very volatile," "White says, "we also know there are times we see lulls in fuel prices. We don’t seem to experience that anytime soon though, with the crude oil price continuing to rise on a weekly basis." Some analysts are expecting gas prices to jump as high as $3.60 a gallon by next summer. White says it’s impossible to predict the future.
White says: "Since the world is basically bidding on the same crude oil products, it’s driving the prices higher. So, we don’t see any retreat in prices anytime soon. Next year, it may be a different picture with the new refineries up and building. We may see more gasoline processed fuel on the marketplace but we’ll just have to wait and see what happens."
White says your best bet right now is to make sure that your car is in good running condition. If you are in the market for a new vehicle, she says to make sure to look at the estimated miles per gallon before making the buy.