Hurricane Laura pushes up gasoline prices
Averages rose last week in most of the Mid-Hudson Valley, as well as across New York state and nationwide.
Average gasoline prices rose last week in the Mid-Hudson Valley, New York state and the nation, partly the result of Hurricane Laura forcing the shutdown of refineries along the Gulf of Mexico, according to GasBuddy.com.
Local averages Monday morning, according to GasBuddy, were $2.22 per gallon in Ulster County, up 7 cents from a week earlier; $2.27 in Dutchess County, unchanged; and $2.36 in Greene County, up 4 cents.
The New York state average Monday morning was $2.29 per gallon, up 3.9 cents, GasBuddy reported. The national average rose 3.5 cents per gallon, to $2.22.
“Gas prices have reached their highest ... level [since the start of thee COVID-19 pandemic] as Hurricane Laura caused Gulf Coast refineries to shut, limiting production as gasoline demand edged higher,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy.
But, De Haan noted, “the rebound in demand comes with just a week left in the summer driving season and isn’t expected to continue once the driving season wraps up . ... In addition, the switch back to cheaper winter gasoline will happen in a few weeks, giving more potential downward momentum for prices.”
New York state’s average gas price Monday was 2.7 cents per gallon higher than a month ago but still 42.7 cents lower than a year ago, according to GasBuddy. The national average Monday was 4 cents per gallon higher than a month ago but 34.4 cents lower than a year ago.
Over the past five years, the average gasoline price on Aug. 31 in New York state has been: $2.76 per gallon in 2019, $2.98 in 2018, $2.55 in 2017, $2.32 in 2016 and $2.62 in 2015.