Gasoline prices are over $4 a gallon in every US state.

Gasoline prices continue to rise and hit a new national average last Tuesday of over $4.50 a gallon. This is 48 cents more than the record high reached in March.

Gasoline prices continue to rise, with the national average surpassing $4.50 a gallon on Tuesday. For the first time, motorists in all 50 states typically pay more than $4 a gallon, while laggards such as Georgia and Oklahoma hit $4.06 and $4.01 respectively on Tuesday.

Growth by a quarter more than the historical maximum

On Wednesday, the national average per gallon of gasoline rose to $4.57. Unadjusted for inflation, this is almost a quarter higher than the previous all-time high of $4.33 reached on March 11. The new record represents a jump of 48 cents from the previous month and $1.53 a gallon more than last year.

AAA spokesman Andrew Gross blamed the high cost of crude oil, which hovered around $110 a barrel. 

"Even the yearly seasonal drop in gasoline demand between spring break and Memorial Day, which usually drives prices down, has no effect this year," Gross said in a statement. 

Why is gasoline so expensive?

The price of gas is inextricably linked to the cost of the crude oil from which it is refined. For every $10 increase in the cost of a barrel of crude oil, it adds almost a quarter to the price of a gallon at the gas station.

As part of the current sanctions for the invasion of Ukraine, the president. Although the US does not import much crude oil from Russia, oil is traded on the world market and any spillover affects prices worldwide.

When the European Union signaled last week that it was offering to phase out Russian oil, crude oil prices skyrocketed and West Texas Intermediate, one of the world's major oil benchmarks, topped $110 a barrel.   

The war between Russia and Ukraine is not the only factor in the rise in gasoline prices

But Troy Vincent, senior market analyst at energy analytics firm DTN, says the war in Ukraine isn't the only factor driving fuel prices up: demand for gas plummeted during the pandemic, causing oil producers to cut production.

Even though demand is approaching pre-pandemic levels, manufacturers are still hesitant to ramp up production. In April, OPEC fell short of its 2.7 million bpd output increase target.

In addition, gas companies have switched to a more expensive summer blend of gasoline that can cost seven to ten cents a gallon. During warmer months, the composition of gasoline changes to prevent excess evaporation caused by higher outside temperatures.

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