Mo. gas average rises 8 cents

Missouri’s gas average rose by 7.8 cents during the past week to $2.08 per gallon yesterday.

On Sunday, prices were 31 cents higher than a month ago but $1.05 cents lower than a year ago. The national average, which rose 7.6 cents during the past week to $2.25 per gallon, has increased 17.5 cents during the past month but decreased $1.10 cents during the past year, according to a GasBuddy.com news release.

“Prices at the pump are starting to heat back up, mostly driven by a rebound in crude oil prices," said Patrick DeHaan, GasBuddy senior petroleum analyst, in the release. “We're seeing the typical seasonal rebound in prices, being led higher by oil's rebound, and soon to be enhanced further by refinery maintenance season - which hasn't yet gotten well underway.”

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was trading at $53.13 per barrel as of 10:02 a.m., compared to a 52-week range of $43.58 to $100.54. Light sweet crude oil futures for March were trading at $53.14.

This morning, Missouri’s gas average was stagnant at $2.08 per gallon, ranking the state No. 9 on GasBuddy’s list of the lowest gas averages in the nation. At $1.90 per gallon, Idaho held the top spot, while Hawaii bottomed out the list with its $3.03 per gallon average.

Two filling stations in Neosho were selling gas this morning at $1.88 per gallon, the lowest price in the state. A high price of $2.29 per gallon was recorded in O’Fallon and St. Louis, according to MissouriGasPrices.com.

In Springfield, the 745 W. El Camino Alto Drive Sam’s Club store had the lowest price, at $1.93 per gallon. Prices elsewhere in the city ranged from $1.94 to $1.99 per gallon.