Washington [US], June 1: The U.S. national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline rose slightly on Tuesday to hit a fresh record high of 4.622 U.S. dollars, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA).
The national average gas price just hit a record high of 4.619 dollars on Monday, the Memorial Day.
The gas price has increased 2.4 cents, or up 0.5 percent from the past week, and 44.4 cents, or up 10.6 percent from a month ago, the latest AAA data showed.
The current price, which doesn't account for inflation, is way above the previous record of 4.114 dollars a gallon set in July 2008.
As of Tuesday, all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia have average gas prices of over four dollars a gallon. California has the highest gas prices in the country, averaging 6.165 dollars a gallon.
Crude oil has moved above 115 dollars a barrel due to fears of further global supply constraints caused by a European Union ban on Russian oil exports, the AAA noted in a statement.
"And domestic gas demand may again start to climb as drivers fuel up for the three-month-long summer travel season, which began this Memorial Day weekend," said the AAA, which forecast that nearly 35 million travelers hit the road for Memorial Day holidays, the highest number since 2019, despite record prices at the gas pump.
Both factors could contribute to further spikes in gas prices.
Andrew Gross, an AAA spokesperson, said that so far, the pent-up urge to travel caused by the pandemic outweighs high pump prices for many consumers.
Gross, however, noted that 67 percent of drivers recently surveyed told the AAA that they would change their driving habits if gas hit 4.50 dollars a gallon, and that number rises to 75 percent at 5 dollars a gallon.
"If pump prices keep rising, will people alter their summer travel plans? That remains to be seen," Gross said.
Source: Xinhua
