 |
NEWS RELEASE CONTACT: For your local media contact visit www.AAA.com/Media Jessica Brady, manager, AAA Public Relations, office: (813) 288-7294; cell: (813) 532-5327, JBrady@AAASouth.com |
PRICE OF CRUDE MOVES HIGHER AFTER TRANS ALASKA PIPELINE SHUTS DOWN
TAMPA, Fla. (Jan. 16, 2011) — The price of crude oil moved slightly higher last week after the Trans Alaska pipeline was forced to shut down after a reported leak. Although the pipeline is expected to be repaired by Sunday afternoon, the temporary shutdown caused oil prices to increase by $3.51 to settle Friday at $91.54 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
In addition, increased demand for heating oil also helped push the price of crude higher last week. As a result, U.S. crude stockpiles decreased by 2.2 million barrels, according to the Energy Department.
"Retail gas prices made minimal increases last week and are expected to make slight gains again this week," said Jessica Brady, spokesperson, AAA Auto Club South. "It’s likely crude oil will trade between $85 and $95 a barrel for the remainder of the month as China is trying to slow demand growth in the country."
The national average price of unleaded regular gasoline is $3.09 per gallon, up 1 cent from last week. Florida’s average price of $3.13 increased 2 cents from last week. Georgia’s average price $3.01 and Tennessee’s average price of $2.95 increased 1 cent from last week, respectively.
CURRENT AND PAST PRICE AVERAGES
Regular Unleaded Gasoline
Current Week Ago Month Ago Year Ago
National: $3.097 $3.088 $2.984 $2.753
Florida: $3.136 $3.117 $2.995 $2.805
Georgia: $3.014 $3.007 $2.877 $2.672
Tennessee: $2.958 $2.948 $2.838 $2.662
AAA’s Daily Fuel Gauge Report (fuelgaugereport.com) is updated each day and is the most comprehensive; reflecting actual prices from credit card transactions within the past 24 hours at two-thirds (100,000 stations) of the gasoline stations in the U.S. Its accuracy is unparalleled.
Next Fuel Price Brief: Sunday, January 23, 2011