Gas Prices Are High and Unlikely to Drop Soon

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Gas prices in the U.S. are hitting record highs at $5 to $6 a gallon. The primary driving force behind this phenomenon is the 50% jump in crude oil prices over the past year, largely due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. However, high oil prices is not the whole story. Analysts explain that another factor behind high gas prices are “unprecedented” bottlenecks at oil refineries, where crude oil is converted into usable products like gasoline. Refineries are still struggling from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and aren’t able to cope with the rebound in the demand for gasoline.

Unfortunately for drivers, it is unlikely that refineries will be able to ramp up production quickly enough to alleviate the pressure for quite some time. Mark Williams, a research director at Wood Mackenzie, comments “This is going to be a tight market for certainly the next two years. We’ll be maintaining this high price environment certainly through the middle of next year.” 

Read more here.

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