Usual May spike in gas prices has yet to show up
Northern California motorists are not seeing the typical spike in gasoline prices in the run-up to Memorial Day as relatively low crude oil prices and ample supplies are keeping fuel costs flat.
The average retail price of gas in Sacramento rose only 1.1 cents over the past week to $2.68 a gallon, according to Monday’s report by national gas price tracker GasBuddy.com.
That’s up just 4.4 cents from last month and 86.3 cents lower than the average at this time last year.
Nationally, GasBuddy said the average retail price of gas fell nearly a penny over the past week to $2.21 a gallon, up 16.8 cents from last month and 45.2 cents lower than the year-ago average.
“In 2015, we saw the national average peak in June and the year before it peaked in April, so while the current plateau may seem encouraging for motorists, we still expect rising consumer demand to elevate gasoline prices as we approach the beginning of the summer driving season,” said Gregg Laskoski, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.
Mark Glover: 916-321-1184, @markhglover
This story was originally published May 9, 2016 at 9:03 AM with the headline "Usual May spike in gas prices has yet to show up."