History has shown when the price of oil rises, so does the price of retail gasoline. But this has not been the case for the past several weeks as gas prices have remained relatively unchanged as the price of oil has jumped to nearly $100 a barrel.
A barrel of oil settled Friday at $98.99 on the New York Mercantile Exchange-$4.73 more than the week prior. This is the highest settlement since July 22, when a barrel of oil closed at $99.87.
Oil prices increased last week as European leaders moved closer to an agreement on a financial resolution and Italy approved a bill in the Senate to cut the country's debt of $2.6 trillion. This caused the stock market to rally and the dollar weakened against the euro. Also, boosting optimism was the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan report that showed consumer sentiment rose to 64.2 for November, more than economists' projection of 61.5.
"The national average price for regular retail gasoline is holding strong around $3.40 a gallon and it's uncertain at what point prices will jump to catch up with the price of crude," said Jessica Brady, AAA spokesperson, The Auto Club Group. "Gas prices may begin to inch up this week now that the price of oil has almost hit $100 a barrel. However, there are some analyst who predict oil prices will fall this week and, if they are accurate, consumers could see another week of stable gas prices."
The national average price of regular unleaded gasoline increased 1 cent from last week for an average of $3.42 per gallon. Florida's average price of $3.41 increased 2 cents from last week and Georgia's average of $3.35 increased 3 cents. Tennessee's average price also increased 1 cent from last week, respectively.
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