As of Monday, the average gas price in Massachusetts is up 40 cents from last week ($2.91), averaging $3.31 per gallon. Monday’s price is 41 cents higher than a month ago ($2.90) and 32 cents higher than this day last year ($2.99). Massachusetts’s average gas price is 16 cents lower than the national average.
AAA Northeast’s March 9 survey of fuel prices found the current national average up 48 cents from last week ($2.99), averaging $3.47 per gallon. Today’s national average price is 57 cents higher than a month ago ($2.90) and 39 cents higher than this day last year ($3.08).
After climbing about 30% last week — the biggest weekly gain since 1983 — crude oil prices topped $100 a barrel as trading opened on Sunday evening following reports of production disruptions across the Middle East. As cargo ships remain at a standstill atthe critical Strait of Hormuz passageway, storage depots across the region have started to fill up. Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar and other oil producers have subsequently dialed back production since there are few places for newly pumped oil to go.
As crude prices surge, gasoline prices are following suit. Over the past seven days, the national average for a gallon of regular unleaded has climbed more than 15% — the highest weekly increase since 2022, when prices climbed 60 cents between March 2 and March 9 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In some markets, the weekly price increases were the highest ever recorded. Along with gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other petroleum products saw significant increases last week.
The dramatic rise in petroleum prices comes even as domestic supply and demand data shows steady U.S. production and comfortable supplies of gasoline, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Gasoline demand took a step back for the week ending Feb. 27, falling nearly 500,000 barrels a day to a comparatively weak 8.29 million barrels a day, the EIA reported last week. Inventories in the Northeast stand at 66.7 million barrels — an increase of 1.7 million barrels over the prior week and a slight increase over a year ago and the five-year average.
“Even with strong domestic production of oil and refined products, gas prices are heavily influenced by the price of crude oil,” said Mark Schieldrop, senior spokesperson for AAA Northeast. “Additionally, global supply issues caused by the conflict in the Middle East could cause additional export pressure on the United States as more countries look to different sources to meet their energy needs.”
Today, Kansas and Oklahoma have the lowest prices in the nation at $2.92 and $2.97, respectively. California and Washington hold the highest prices in the nation this week at $5.20 and $4.63, respectively. Massachusetts holds the 26th place on the list of highest gas prices in the nation.
AAA Northeast is a not-for-profit auto club with offices in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, New Hampshire and New York, providing more than 6.8 million local AAA members with travel, insurance, financial and auto-related services.