Gas prices in Florida jumped this past week amid global supply disruptions tied primarily to renewed conflicts in the Middle East.
AAA reported an average gallon of gas in Florida at $4.28 on Monday, up 14 cents from a week ago and $1.38 more per gallon than at the end of February when the U.S. and Israel jointly attacked Iran.
The increase comes as global crude oil prices rose around 27 percent over the past three weeks, returning to $100 per barrel numbers last seen in May, according to AAA.
“Rising oil prices contributed to the latest jump at the pump,” AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said in a released statement. “Ongoing tensions in the Middle East have created uncertainty about global oil supplies. That uncertainty has placed renewed upward pressure on oil prices. Since oil accounts for about half the price of gasoline, higher crude costs are making their way to gas stations nationwide.”
Pump averages for gas ranged from $4.56 a gallon in Monroe County, which includes the Florida Keys, to $4.04 in the Panhandle counties of Escambia and Bay.
Diesel, vital to the state’s supply chain, was $6.28 a gallon, dropping 3 cents over the week but increasing by 76 cents in the past month.
The national averages stood at $4.48 for a gallon of gas, 16 cents higher than a week earlier, and $6.51 for diesel. Diesel has increased 28 cents a gallon over the week and 93 cents in the past month.
