Columbus gas prices hit by 'price cycling' before the holidays
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Gasoline ‘price cycling’ reared its ugly head again in central Ohio as the cost of a gallon of gasoline in the Columbus area rose by 20 cents last week.
According to GasBuddy’s survey of 500 stations in the Columbus area, the average price at the pump jumped by 20.2 cents per gallon last week to once again creep above the $3 threshold at $3.11. The current price is 23.3 cents per gallon higher than last month and 38.5 cents per gallon higher than this time one year ago.
The cheapest gas station in the Columbus area was priced at $2.69 a gallon on Sunday, while the most expensive was $3.21, a difference of 52 cents per gallon. In Ohio, the average price of gas also jumped significantly by 20.6 cents from $2.82 per gallon to $3.03 per gallon.
Nationally, gas prices rose slightly, by 0.8 cents per gallon, to reach $2.98. The price of diesel however, continued its weekly, incremental drops in prices, this time by 1.8 cents, settling at $3.47 per gallon.
According to GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan, the window remains open for another round of falling prices before the new year.
"As we edge closer to the end of the year, we're seeing momentum for falling gas prices weaken, which is typical, as the national average generally bottoms out between Thanksgiving and Christmas," said De Haan. “While several states saw gas prices cycle last week, marked by a big jump in prices after a large decline, those that did see hefty jumps should see prices drift a bit lower, potentially making a second run at the season's lowest prices.”