As gas prices climb, Kansas still has some of the lowest. But for how long?
The average price of gas in the United States soared to a new record Tuesday as President Biden announced a ban on all Russian oil imports.
Kansas still has some of the lowest gas prices nationally, but they are rising, too.
The average price for a gallon of gas in the U.S. hit $4.17 Tuesday. The record had been $4.11, set in July 2008.
In Kansas, the average price per gallon sat at $3.73. That’s up five cents from the day before and up 35 cents from a week ago, according to AAA of Kansas.
“It’s hard to predict how much more prices will rise,” said Shawn Steward, public and government affairs manager for AAA.
“The continued volatility and uncertainty in the geopolitical situation with Ukraine and Russia’s involvement as their role of an oil and gas producer has the markets reacting accordingly,” Steward said.
Prices were already rising before the invasion started, he said.
For comparison, Steward says prices sat at around $2.60 per gallon a year ago. This is a $1.13 increase from Tuesday’s price in Kansas.
GasBuddy has an app and website that uses a real-time, crowd-sourced map that tracks local gas prices in Kansas. You can also track prices per county.
The increase in gas demand and a reduction in total supply is contributing to rising prices at the pump, but skyrocketing oil prices are playing an increasingly large role.
The price of benchmark U.S. crude jumped 8% Tuesday to more than $129 per barrel.
Americans can expect the current trend at the pump to continue as long as crude prices climb, the AAA said.
Rising gas prices come as President Joe Biden has decided to ban Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia’s economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Contributing: The Associated Press
This story was originally published March 8, 2022 at 3:19 PM.