Alaska Pumps First to Average $4 a Gallon
LOS ANGELES -- In what is expected to be an unfortunate trend, Alaska became the first state in the U.S. to the hit the feared $4 dollar per gallon mark for gasoline yesterday, a reality more states will face as the summer season approaches.
"It wasn't totally unexpected," Geoff Sundstrom, spokesman for the travel and auto group AAA, which issues a daily gasoline price report, told Reuters. "Oil prices recently brushed against $127 per barrel so certainly, $4 gasoline could be in the cards for other states as well this summer."
According to a report released by AAA, Alaskans using self-service regular gasoline paid $4.006 per gallon, which is upwards of $60 per fill-up for a 15-gallon tank. In slight contrast, the report stated that the U.S. average for gasoline was $3.758 per gallon, a record compared to last year's $2.946 a gallon.
As motorists hem and haw, analysts agree that while most states will likely hit the $4 dollar mark, the Memorial Day weekend will dictate pricing curves. "Memorial Day weekend is a little to the gasoline industry what Christmas is to retailers," Sundstrom told Reuters. "It's one of the highest demand weekends for fuel and is a barometer for what can be expected in summer driving season demand."
This week Connecticut, California, New York and Illinois were each less than a penny away from reaching the $4 threshold. According to MasterCard, gasoline demand as fallen by 1 percent in 2008. The Petroleum Marketers Association of America said this marks the first decline since 1991.
"It wasn't totally unexpected," Geoff Sundstrom, spokesman for the travel and auto group AAA, which issues a daily gasoline price report, told Reuters. "Oil prices recently brushed against $127 per barrel so certainly, $4 gasoline could be in the cards for other states as well this summer."
According to a report released by AAA, Alaskans using self-service regular gasoline paid $4.006 per gallon, which is upwards of $60 per fill-up for a 15-gallon tank. In slight contrast, the report stated that the U.S. average for gasoline was $3.758 per gallon, a record compared to last year's $2.946 a gallon.
As motorists hem and haw, analysts agree that while most states will likely hit the $4 dollar mark, the Memorial Day weekend will dictate pricing curves. "Memorial Day weekend is a little to the gasoline industry what Christmas is to retailers," Sundstrom told Reuters. "It's one of the highest demand weekends for fuel and is a barometer for what can be expected in summer driving season demand."
This week Connecticut, California, New York and Illinois were each less than a penny away from reaching the $4 threshold. According to MasterCard, gasoline demand as fallen by 1 percent in 2008. The Petroleum Marketers Association of America said this marks the first decline since 1991.