Gas prices continue to trend in the wrong direction, and its starting to hurt the pocket book of Delawareans.
According to AAA Mid-Atlantic, the first state is seeing one the largest increases compared to other states, with the state average at $3.77 a gallon today, a 19-cent jump from a week ago. The national average is 11-cents from a week ago to $3.72 a gallon, as total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 500,000 barrels to 246 million last week.
In addition to demand and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a reduction in total supply is also playing a role in those higher prices. According to the Energy information Association, Russia exports about 5 million barrels of crude oil per day, representing about 12 percent of global trade.
AAA says sanctions and a potential ban on imports from Russia will likely cause prices to rise, with the possibility of $4.00 a gallon on the horizon.