SC gas prices reverse course after falling below $3 per gallon last week

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - The average price for a gallon of gasoline in South Carolina rose 4.2 cents over the past week, wiping out last week’s drop and pushing the state average back above the $3-mark.

GasBuddy, which conducts a weekly survey of some 3,000 gas stations statewide, found the average price per gallon was $3.02, down 10.4 cents from this time last month and 84.5 cents down from this time last year.

The cheapest gas on Sunday was priced at $2.66 per gallon, while the most expensive was $3.49 per gallon, a difference of 83 cents per gallon.

As of Monday morning, the cheapest gas in the Tri-County was at a station in Summerville selling gas for $2.85 per gallon.

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Nationally, the average price per gallon sits at $3.36 per gallon, an increase of 3.5 cents over last week. The national average sits 6.5 cents down from a month ago and 69.3 cents down from one year ago. The national average for a gallon of diesel fell 4.6 cents last week and stands at $4.34 per gallon.

“The national average rose last week as the transition to summer gasoline has now started across the entire country. The higher cost of these various blends is being passed along to motorists, as we see every year ahead of the summer driving season,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said. “Some regions are moving to the required summer gasoline in different steps then others, and the fragmentation of required blends absolutely plays a role in these price increases. Logistical challenges in making the transition during a time when refiners are also doing maintenance work can create hotspots and lead to noticeable jumps in prices during the spring. While we may not see weekly increases, the overall trend will remain upward through much of the spring. By Memorial Day, most of the nation will be transitioned to their respective required blend of fuel, and gas prices could ease, but a $4 per gallon national average remains possible by then.”

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