MO gas average jumps 15.4 cents

Following a brief lull, Missouri's average retail gasoline price jumped 15.4 cents during the week of July 30-Aug. 5 to $3.50 per gallon. During the week that ended July 29, the state average dropped after three weeks of increases.

The latest week's price movement brought Missouri 10 cents below the national average, which was $3.60 per gallon yesterday, according to a GasBuddy.com news release.

Missouri's Aug. 5 average was 25.4 cents higher than a month ago and unchanged from a year ago. The U.S. average, which rose 9.3 cents during the week, was 19.1 cents higher than a month ago and 6.5 cents lower than the same day in 2011.

"Watching the national average last week, one might have expected war broke out in the Middle East or a major hurricane shut down production -  neither of which happened, yet gasoline prices spiked," said Patrick DeHaan, GasBuddy.com senior petroleum analyst, in the release. "The scary thought is what may happen to gasoline prices should one of the two actually take place.

"The good news for motorists is that the end to the summer driving season and change to (winter) fuel is in view, which will likely put downward pressure on gasoline prices."

The Missouri average, which increased another 3 cents this morning, ranked No. 20 on GasBuddy.com's list of the lowest gas averages in the nation. At $3.25 per gallon, New Mexico held the top spot, while Hawaii was at the bottom with an average of $4.10 per gallon.

As of 9:18 a.m., the least expensive gas in Missouri was available for $3.19 per gallon at a filing station in Charleston, located in southeast Missouri. Five stations in West Quincy, located in northeast Missouri, had the most expensive gas in the state, at $3.79 per gallon.

In Springfield, the lowest gas price could be found for $3.35 per gallon at Cenex, 3901 W. Chestnut Expressway, according to MissouriGasPrices.com.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was trading at $91.09 per barrel as of 9:22 a.m., up from $90.10 a week ago. Light sweet crude oil futures for September were trading at $91.02 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.