Arizona gas prices close in on record high

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) - Arizona is feeling yet another pinch at the pump as gas prices soar around the country. The average price of gas in the state is $.4.66 a gallon, up 10 cents from last week and 158 cents from the same period in 2021, according to data from GasBuddy. The national average gas price hit a new record high Tuesday of $4.36 per gallon, rising just above the previous record set in March, according to GasBuddy. In just the last seven days, the national average fuel price rose over 15 cents per gallon.

Experts believe costs could climb through Memorial Day as summer road trip season begins and oil prices remain volatile. “There’s little, if any, good news about fuel prices heading into summer, and the problem could become worse should we see an above-average hurricane season, which could knock out refinery capacity at a time we badly need it as refined product inventories continue to plummet,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

The national average for diesel hit another record of $5.54 a gallon Monday, which is up 22 cents in a week and 49 cents in a month, according to AAA. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February sent prices surging as investors braced for oil supply disruptions caused by the war and embargoes on Russian energy.

The Biden administration responded by unleashing a record amount of oil from U.S. emergency oil stockpiles, announcing on March 31 that 1 million barrels a day would be released for six months. The ongoing effort helped cool oil and gasoline prices off, but the relief was fleeting and relatively minor.

Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. CNN and Gray News contributed to this report.