Nov 17, 2020 2 min read

The four-week run of gasoline price decreases has ended in Western Pennsylvania.

A gallon of unleaded self-serve costs an average of $2.504 this week, 2.2 cents higher than a week ago, AAA East Central reported Monday. AAA monitors weekly prices in 23 cities and towns across the region.

This is the eighth week in a row the regional average has fluctuated by a few pennies or less. The newest figure is 26.6 cents lower than it was a year ago, at $2.770.

After three consecutive significant declines, fuel prices in the greater Washington area rose slightly – 1.7 cents per gallon – to $2.252. That average is 43.6 cents cheaper than it was on Jan. 1.

For the third straight week, Washington’s average is the second lowest in the region, again behind New Castle ($2.218).

Uniontown’s price jumped 4.8 cents to $2.558, which ranks 12th lowest regionally. That average is 30.6 cents a gallon higher than Washington’s.

Oil City and Warren share the highest average at $2.599.

Pennsylvania’s average is $2.474, a 3.9-cent rise from last week. The national figure rose by a penny to $2.12, which is 48 cents lower than a year ago. Prices increased in nearly 30 states, the high being eight cents in South Carolina, followed by six-cent bumps in Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota and New Mexico.

The higher prices are probably due to a increase in demand – from 8.3 million to 8.7 million barrels a day – coupled with a 2.3 million decrease in supply. Those figures are courtesy of the Energy Information Administration.