By John Raffel
Correspondent
ALLEGAN – Gas prices are on the rise locally, statewide and nationwide.
AAA reports as of April 3, the average gas prices in Allegan County are $3.539 per gallon.
This compares to $3.583 in Barry County, $3.494 in Van Buren County, $3.498 in Kalamazoo County, $3.498 in Ottawa County and $3.519 in Kent County.
The national average is at $3.507 per gallon while the state average is $3.499 compared to $3.367 a week ago, $3.448 a month ago and $4.034 a year ago.
The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline rose a nickel since last week to hit $3.48. Robust demand for gasoline and rising oil prices are the driving factors for the recent uptick in pump prices.
“Oil prices finally crested and have now settled above the $70 per barrel mark after weeks of hovering just below it,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson in a statement, “and gas demand is very robust. These two factors will cause drivers to see prices increase for now.”
According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand increased from 8.96 million to 9.15 million b/d last week. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks decreased substantially by 2.9 million bbl to 226.7 million bbl.