Gas prices could reach $3 a gallon by Memorial Day
Mar. 1—Gas prices in Michigan are up 12 cents compared to a week ago, according to AAA — The Auto Club Group.
Michigan drivers are now paying an average of $2.76 per gallon for regular unleaded, which is the highest price seen since September 2019. That's 35 cents more than this time last month and 36 cents more than this time last year.
Motorists are paying an average of $41 for a full 15-gallon tank of gasoline, an increase of about $1 from when prices peaked last January.
Some analysts predict prices will rise to $3 a gallon by the end of May, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The national average continues to increase as crude prices march higher. Gas prices have also increased from longer-than-expected refinery outages due to the winter storm that impacted the Gulf Coast. As refineries restart and resume normal operations, supply is expected to increase in impacted areas and should bring stability to pump prices. Until then, most drivers should expect pump prices to continue increasing through the weekend.
Crude prices increased last week due to growing market optimism that as vaccines become more available, crude demand will recover.
"Michigan drivers have seen gas prices steadily increase over the past few weeks due to rising crude oil prices," said Adrienne Woodland, spokesperson, AAA-The Auto Club Group. "With Midwest refineries beginning the switch to the more expensive summer-blend gasoline and the Gulf Coast refinery outages still having an impact, motorists could continue to see higher pump prices through the week."
According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Michigan was priced at $2.48 per gallon Monday, while the most expensive was $2.99 per gallon.
"Gas prices continued to surge last week following cold weather related shutdowns in Texas, but going forward, the impact from the cold has likely run its course," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. "However, several other factors will rise in their influence on gas prices again, including the fact that gasoline demand continues up steam."
According to Pay with GasBuddy data, last week's total gasoline demand soared to the highest level since the pandemic began as COVD-19 cases continue to drop and and Americans are filling up more.
"On the supply side, the number of oil rigs active in the U.S. stands nearly 50 percent lower than a year ago, which is a large factor driving prices up," De Haan said. "To put it simply, demand is recovering much much faster than oil production levels, which is why oil prices have soared. This week, OPEC will be meeting to hopefully increase oil production to temper the rise in prices, but will they increase oil production enough to match the growing appetite of a global economy that's seen oil demand jump? We'll have to wait and see."
Most expensive gas price averages: Saginaw ($2.78), Grand Rapids ($2.77), Lansing ($2.77)
Least expensive gas price averages: Traverse City ($2.56), Metro Detroit ($2.75), Marquette ($2.76)
