Area gas prices rise in past week

ALBANY, N.Y. » Average gasoline prices in Albany have risen 10.0 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $4.30 per gallon today, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 546 stations in Albany. Prices in Albany are 4.4 cents per gallon higher than a month ago and stand $1.40 per gallon higher than a year ago.

According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Albany was priced at $3.99 per gallon yesterday while the most expensive was $4.55 per gallon, a difference of 56.0 cents per gallon. The lowest price in the state yesterday was $3.80 per gallon while the highest was $5.57 per gallon, a difference of $1.77 per gallon.

The national average price of gasoline has risen 6.9 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $4.17 per gallon today. The national average is down one cent per gallon from a month ago and stands $1.29 per gallon higher than a year ago, according to GasBuddy data compiled from more than 11 million weekly price reports covering over 150,000 gas stations across the country.

“Gasoline prices have continued their rally in the last week with oil prices sustaining higher levels, but the real story has been diesel fuel, which has skyrocketed to its highest level ever seen. Diesel is now $1 per gallon or more in many areas compared to gasoline,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “The meteoric rise in diesel prices is likely to continue for the first half of the week at least, while gasoline prices could continue to see a slow but steady rise.

“For now, the rising cost of diesel will surely be felt in the grocery store, hardware store or on your next flight as jet fuel prices accelerate, leading to a continued rise in inflation likely to ripple across the economy.”