PROVIDENCE – Gasoline prices in Rhode Island rose to start the year, AAA Southern New England reported Monday.
The auto club’s Jan. 4 survey found the average price of self-serve, unleaded regular at Ocean State stations was $2.66 per gallon, up 3 cents from last week.
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Crude oil traded for more than $80 a barrel for the first time since November on Monday as cold weather in the United States and Asia and an improving outlook for the world economy raised the prospect of growth in demand, according to Bloomberg News.
Oil rose as much as $1.99, or 2.5 percent, to $81.35 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest price since Oct. 26 and the first time the fuel topped $80 since Nov. 18.
“Most important has been the cold weather,” Christopher Bellew, senior broker with Bache Commodities Ltd. in London, told Bloomberg. “There has also been the re-emergence of political risk in Iran and strength across commodities generally. But if there’s any sign of a thaw we’ll see prices drop.”
In its survey, AAA found prices in Rhode Island ranging from $2.53 to $2.79 per gallon for unleaded regular. At $2.66, the average price per gallon in Rhode Island is the same as the average price nationwide.
A year ago, gas prices in Rhode Island stood at $1.66 per gallon, a full dollar below the current price, according to AAA.
Prices also rose 3 cents in Massachusetts. The AAA survey found the average price of self-serve, unleaded regular was $2.62 per gallon in the Bay State, 4 cents below the Rhode Island and national averages.
At stations in Rhode Island this week, the survey found average self-serve prices of $2.80 per gallon for midgrade unleaded, $2.91 for premium unleaded gasoline, and $2.88 for diesel.
For more information, visit AAA.com.
