The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline rose 3 cents over the past week to $4.10, putting August on track to become the most expensive on record for gasoline, according to AAA.
As of Thursday, the national average stood at $4.1044 per gallon, compared with $4.0715 a week ago, $4.0032 a month ago and $3.1337 a year ago.
AAA said the current national average is the highest ever recorded for this date. The average price so far in August is $4.06 per gallon, exceeding the previous August record of $3.97 set in 2022.
The increase comes despite a decline in gasoline demand, which AAA said is typical for this time of year. Higher crude oil prices are instead helping push prices at the pump upward, with crude remaining in the $80-per-barrel range amid continued instability in the Strait of Hormuz.
New data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed gasoline demand declined from 8.96 million barrels per day to 8.68 million barrels per day last week.
Domestic gasoline supplies increased from 208.7 million barrels to 209.4 million barrels, while gasoline production increased to an average of 9.7 million barrels per day.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 89 cents Wednesday to settle at $85.83 per barrel.
U.S. crude oil inventories increased by 4.4 million barrels from the previous week to 428.8 million barrels, matching the five-year average for this time of year, according to the EIA.
California had the nation’s most expensive gasoline average at $5.58 per gallon, followed by Hawaii at $5.42 and Washington at $5.24. Indiana had the lowest average at $3.56, followed by Texas at $3.64 and Tennessee and Mississippi at $3.66.
Meanwhile, the national average cost of electricity at a public electric vehicle charging station remained unchanged at 42 cents per kilowatt-hour.
New Jersey ranked among the 10 most expensive states for public EV charging, with an average cost of 45 cents per kilowatt-hour, according to AAA. West Virginia had the highest average at 52 cents, followed by Hawaii at 51 cents.
Drivers can find current gasoline and electric vehicle charging prices along their routes through AAA’s TripTik Travel Planner.
