Average price for a gallon of regular gas in Washington hits record high

The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas in Washington is the highest it’s ever been, according to the American Automobile Association.

On Monday, AAA data showed that the average price for a gallon of gas was $4.449, the highest recorded average price in state history. A month ago, that figure was $3.955. A year ago, it was $3.169.

Washington isn’t alone. Gas prices are skyrocketing across the U.S. as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine disrupts the global energy market.

The average national price for a gallon of gas on Monday was $4.06, the highest it’s been since July 2008. AAA said that current figure is 45 cents higher than it was a year ago, 62 cents higher than it was a month ago and $1.30 higher than it was a year ago. Many speculate that prices could creep above the 2008 record of $4.11 sometime this week.

The AAA website has county-by-county breakdown of gas prices in Washington. Generally, refiners sell gasoline to retailers at wholesale prices that differ across geographic areas. Prices tend to be higher in places where there is more demand.

Predictably, prices are highest in King County, the state’s most populous region. There, a gallon of gas costs $4.662 on average. Prices are the next highest in Pacific and Snohomish counties, where, on average, a single gallon of gas costs $4.625 and $4.561, respectively. Prices are the lowest in Pend Oreille County. There, a gallon of gas costs $3.824.

Gas prices were already rising during the pandemic due in part to fluctuations in supply and demand. But after the U.S. and European Union imposed harsh economic sanctions on Russia — which supplies 10% of the world’s oil — many refiners and traders stopped purchasing oil from the country for fear they would violate those sanctions. That has led to a sharp drop in the supply of oil, which drives gas prices up as demand continues to rise.