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Experts are cautioning Americans that staggering gas prices are expected to soar even more amidRussia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In anews release, American Automobile Association spokesperson Ellen Edmonds stated that the national average for a gallon of gas was $4.06 as of Monday, up 45 cents from more than one week ago.
“As the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues, crude prices soar, leading to higher pump prices in the U.S.,” Edmonds said.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, warned in anews releasepublished Monday that the U.S. is inching closer to reaching an all-time record high for gas prices. De Haan said the the national average for gas could increase to $4.50 soon.
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“There are few words to describe the unprecedented rise in gasoline prices over the last week, with massive spikes coast to coast in both gasoline and diesel prices, as oil prices jump to their highest since 2008,” said De Haan, per the news release.
“Forget the $4 per gallon mark, the nation will soon set new all-time record highs and we could push closer to a national average of $4.50,” De Haan added.
He noted that recent U.S. sanctions on Russia, which are in response to the war in Ukraine, have impacted gas prices.
“We’ve never been in this situation before, with this level of uncertainty. As we lose a major global producer [Russia] under the weight of deserving bipartisan sanctions for invading a sovereign country, the cost is high,” De Haan added. “Americans will be feeling the pain of the rise in prices for quite some time, with little good news foreseen.”
In response to the problem, the International Energy Agency last week announced “a coordinated release of crude oil from its 31 member countries' strategic reserves, including the U.S., Germany, Canada, South Korea, and Mexico, to help counter the impact of rising crude prices,” AAA explained.
The member nations will release a total of 61.7 million barrels of crude oil, marking “the largest coordinated release since IEA was founded in 1974,” AAA said. “Despite this announcement, the impact on pricing has been limited given that the amount of oil planned for release is small in comparison to the amount that flows daily from Russia to other countries around the globe.”
Amid the price surge,CNBCpublished tips from experts on how drivers can save at the pump. One of the options is paying with cash, as the price per gallon can be as much as 15 cents more for consumers who pay with credit cards.
source: people.com
