LA County Gas Prices Hit Record Levels; Crude Oil Prices Spike After Russian Invasion Of Ukraine
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Gas prices in Los Angeles and Orange counties hit record levels again Thursday and show no signs of tapering off any time soon as the Russian invasion of Ukraine could hike prices even higher in the coming weeks.
The average price of a gallon of regular Thursday in L.A. County increased 2.6 cents, to $4.82, a new record. Gas prices at many stations were well over $5 a gallon.
The average price has set 18 records in 21 days, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. It is 15 cents higher than one month ago and $1.14 greater than one year ago.
The Orange County average price set its 17th record since Feb. 3, increasing 2.5 cents to $4.80. The Orange County average price is 15 cents higher than one month ago and $1.13 greater than one year ago.
Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine Wednesday, a move likely to create significant volatility across global markets and raise the price of crude oil. Bloomberg reported Thursday that the price of a barrel of crude oil rose to $105 following the invasion, the first time it has crossed the $100-mark since Russia invaded Crimea in 2014.
"We know the price of oil has already been going up, we've seen oil and gas prices up 40% from a year ago, we're headed higher unfortunately," CBS News business analyst Jill Schlesinger said bluntly Thursday.
Russia accounts for 12% of the world's oil supply, per CBS News.
Last month, California Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed the possibility of freezing the state's gas tax hike this year in an effort to combat spiking inflation. California has a gas excise tax of 51.1 cents per gallon, the highest of any state in the nation. That tax is scheduled to increase on July 1 because of inflation.
(© Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)