The national average for gasoline stood at $4.03 a gallon Wednesday, AAA said.
That marks the first time gas prices have been above the $4 mark this late in the year, according to GasBuddy petroleum analyst Patrick De Haan.
Gas prices have been running hot since the war with Iran started at the end of February, jumping first above $3 a gallon and then $4.
Prices since then have bounced around as the war and promises of a resolution have waxed and waned.
A month ago, the national average was at $3.87.
It was $4.08 last week, according to AAA.
Wednesday’s price of $4.03 doesn’t stand out — except in its timing.
De Haan said his firm’s data going back to 2000 has never seen the price above $4 a gallon this late in the year.
Prior price shocks, which sent prices even higher, had all resolved by Aug. 12, such as in 2022 when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine briefly sent U.S. gas prices skyrocketing to an all-time high of $5 a gallon.
But by Aug. 12 of that year, gas prices had fallen below the $4 level.
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The post At above $4 a gallon, gas prices have never been this high so late in the year appeared first on Washington Post.
