National average gas price hits $4 a gallon

As if you didn’t likely already know, gasoline prices are skyrocketing, in DeSoto County and around the nation. 

The national average price of gasoline late last week reached and surpassed $4 per gallon for the first time since 2008. It stood just 10 cents below the all-time record of $4.103 per gallon. 

GasBuddy, the leading fuel savings platform providing American drivers with the most ways to save money on gas, said prices have spiked across the country due to the Russian war on Ukraine as sanctions cripple Russia’s ability to export crude oil, spiking gas prices by nearly 41 cents in the last seven days alone. 

As of Friday, the weekly rise in gas prices was the second largest ever, following the rise of 49 cents per gallon during the week of September 3, 2005. Friday’s daily rise of 15.8 cents per gallon was also the second largest daily rise ever, coming close to the record of 18.1 cents per gallon set as Hurricane Katrina tore through the Gulf 17 years ago. Diesel prices, however, didn’t share the same fate as gasoline, as diesel soared to its largest daily gain ever: 22.2 cents per gallon, six cents higher than the previous record from 2013.

“This is a milestone that was hard to imagine happening so quickly, but with bipartisan support of severe sanctions on Russia, is not exactly surprising – it is the cost of choking off Russia from energy revenue,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. “Americans should prepare to pay more for gas than they ever have before. Shopping and paying smart at the pump will be critical well into summer.”

In DeSoto County on Sunday, prices for regular unleaded ranged from $3.47 to $3.89 a gallon, according to GasBuddy.