Minnesota gas prices surge nearly 30 cents in a week

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(The Center Square) – Minnesota gas prices saw some of the largest increases of any state over the past week, rising by 27 cents per gallon.

This is according to Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

“We saw some of the largest weekly increases in gasoline and diesel prices in months in the last week,” De Haan said in an early Monday morning analysis.

This comes as refinery issues, foreign wars, and pipeline outages affect both the global and domestic markets.

Michigan, Utah, Wisconsin, and New Mexico preceded Minnesota in the top five states with the biggest weekly gasoline spikes.

On the diesel front, Georgia, Florida, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Colorado saw the largest price increases. Georgia and Florida both saw increases around 65 cents per gallon.

De Haan warned that further increases could be seen across the nation, especially states in the Great Lakes region.

“I'll keep you updated if and when there's a price spike in the Great Lakes region due to refinery issues – for now, there's already higher prices (for everyone),” De Haan said Monday.

That said, he added that prices could also decline as the market shifts to winter gasoline over the next week, which is generally cheaper to produce than the summer blend used during warmer months.

On Monday, the current average for regular unleaded was $4.23 across Minnesota. That is nine cents lower than the national average, which saw a 13 cent jump in the last week.

This is according to the latest data from AAA.

Compared to yesterday, the average from regular unleaded across the state actually declined slightly, but increased significantly from last week’s price of $3.97.

Mid-grade fuel in Minnesota currently averages $4.68 per gallon, while premium stands at $5.19. Diesel averages $6.08 per gallon, up from $2.48 a year ago.

These increases are unusual for this time of year.

“Pump prices are currently comparable to early June,” AAA said in last week’s report. “The national average is increasing during a season when gas prices typically go down due to lower gasoline demand.”

One year ago, the average price for regular unleaded in Minnesota was $3.04 per gallon. That means drivers are paying nearly $1.20 more per gallon today than they were a year ago. This is having a real impact on the cost of living for everyone, De Haan said.

“Ominous: Americans have collectively spent >$100 billion more on gasoline and diesel since March 1 compared to the same period a year ago,” he said on Sunday. “$109.2 billion through the end of today thus far, and currently adding ~$730 million more each day.”

Nationally, California continues to have the highest average gas prices at $6 per gallon. Indiana has the lowest at $3.59 per gallon.