Gas prices keep rising in Wash. state and nationwide, with no end in sight

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

SEATTLE - Gasoline prices are climbing upward in Washington state and across the nation, and experts say that trend is likely to continue or even intensify in the weeks and months ahead as demand outstrips supply.

Over the past week, Seattle gas prices have risen 5.6 cents per gallon, averaging $3.31 as of Monday, according to a survey by gas price tracking service GasBuddy. That is 24.6 cents per gallon higher than a month ago and 4.3 cents per gallon higher than a year ago.

According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Seattle is priced at $2.85 per gallon while the most expensive is $3.89 per gallon, a difference of $1.04.

Meanwhile, gas prices also are climbing across the rest of the state:

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https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/gas-prices-keep-rising-in-wash-state-and-nationwide-with-no-end-in-sight/ar-BB1en9YJ?ocid=hplocalnews

[onecaliberal]

1. I filled up on Saturday. It was 3.40 a gallon.

30 days ago when I filled up it was 2.89. This is just ridiculous.

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Did OPEC cut supply?

[sboatcar]

3. I think this is just a rebound

Prices fell quite a bit due to the low demand when covid hit.

[AZSkiffyGeek]

4. I think they did cut supplies

But there are probably a lot of factors:
1) More people traveling now that restrictions are being loosened
2) The storm in Texas last month
3) The attack on oil fields in Saudi Arabia
4) The tensions between US and Iran
5) Spring break coming up
6) The switch away from winter gas blends

This is mostly speculation, but this is around the time that prices usually start going back up annually.

[dutch777]

5. It's a bit of a perfect storm leading to higher prices. OPEC and US producers holding production low

The shale oil companies in the midwest, even though they can pump profitably at the current $60/barrel level, were in so much debt going into the lowered demand crisis spawned by Covid, they are now de facto on board with OPEC+ to keep prices high to help pay down that debt. We will probably hear from the lying Repubs that this production limitation is due to the Keystone pipeline permit cancellation or lack of federal drilling licenses. Neither of those facts are true.

While no Keystone pipeline limits delivery location options for north plains and Canadian crude, it will just end up at west coast ports rather than TX ports. Basically puts oil in train tank cars instead of a pipeline. Maybe it leads to being exported as more likely than US domestic use but really the oil market is one big market and prices are largely set accordingly.

As to lack of Fed drilling licenses, the major oil companies have enough private and Fed licenses to drill for a decade or more at even pre-Covid rates without running out of oil. And by then, given car manufacturers and consumers swinging readily to electric vehicles, demand will be further degraded.

I know for many, due to long travel distances and lack of EV support infrastructure...specifically quick charging stations...EVs are not practical yet. But living in a major metro area, I had an EV for three years just before I retired, sort of as an experiment. I rarely had trips longer than 150 miles a day so the somewhat limited range of an EV was not an issue. My fuel costs went from about $250/month for gas to $50 to $75 per month for same driving in the EV. There was virtually no maintenance costs as number of moving parts to wear on an EV as significantly less. With EVs now getting much longer range battery packs, more selection, lower first costs and steadily spreading infrastructure support will lessen practical restrictions more and more each year.

This could be the oil companies last hurrah.

[magicarpet]

6. Funny when a Dem ends up in the White House,... gasoline prices go up.

USA domestic (Texas) and Saw-Die oil cartels seem to help this come to fruition.

Some think it proves ReThugs are so much better at handling the economics of government. But it is more an elaborate shell game of hucksterism and snake oil salesman skills.