Numerous factors behind current fuel prices
Jan. 25—A lot of factors influence high gas prices seen at the pump.
According to GasBuddy, the average price Tuesday for regular gasoline in McAlester was $2.97, matching the overall average for the state with the national average being $3.33.
Diesel prices in McAlester hovered around the $3.39.
The national average rose 1.8 cents over the past week and is up 3.3 cents for the month and 92 cents from last year, according to data from GasBuddy.
"The national average price of diesel has risen 5.4 cents in the last week and stands at $3.66 per gallon- the highest level since October 2014," GasBuddy states.
Twilah Monroe, Office Manager for RAM, INC which operates several area gas stations, said she has heard numerous comments about the current price of fuel and explains how fuel prices can change several times a day depending on numerous circumstances and can sometimes be unpredictable.
"There is not a set way to figure fuel pricing," Monroe said. "Prices may change one, two, three times a day. A load bought in the morning may be ten cents more or ten cents less when bought in the afternoon. It depends on the posted price at the time of day you loaded the product."
Other factors that affect fuel costs are delivery costs, employee costs, the volume of each store, and the needs for the store.
"A low volume store doesn't sell their fuel as quickly as a high-volume store," Monroe said. "Their cost may be a lot more or a lot less than the current price that a high-volume store has posted."
Monroe said even credit card fees are also a factor when setting fuel prices.
"Credit card fees are currently around 6-10 cents a gallon depending on the type of card and the price of the fuel," Monroe said.
According to analysts, the overall oil market is currently being influenced by the situation between Russia and Ukraine.
"With oil prices remaining elevated, average gas prices inched up in most states over the last week even as gasoline demand weakened, a testament to how concerned oil markets are with unrest in oil producing nations," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at Gas Buddy in his weekly blog. "With all eyes on the Russia/Ukraine situation, oil will likely remain north of $80 per barrel, with additional volatility."
De Haan said prices could rise significantly more if the situation between the two countries deteriorates more.
"For now, I don't expect any immediate fireworks at the pump, but the trend of rising gas prices will likely persist as worries continue to overpower weak global consumption," De Haan said.
Contact Derrick James at djames@mcalesternews.com
