Gas hits $5 per gallon milestone in Somerset County
Gasoline prices officially hit the $5 per gallon landmark in Somerset County last week, crossing a threshold never before seen in the area.
As of Monday, Somerset County's average unleaded per gallon price was just below $5 at $4.942, according to AAA, but residents spotted many prices well over $5. Fuel30 in Jennerstown was at $5.30 per gallon, and Rock City Express in Rockwood was at $5.24 on Monday.
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The national average was $4.865, and the Pennsylvania average was $4.954 on Monday. The highest county average was $5.119 per gallon in Susquehanna.
According to AAA, the price per barrel is nearing $120 — double what it was in August.
Prices continue to rise as demand increases during high travel dates in the summer and tight global supply continues.
The national average increased 25 cents in one week.
“People are still fueling up, despite these high prices,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson. “At some point, drivers may change their daily driving habits or lifestyle due to these high prices, but we are not there yet.”
"Today’s national average for a gallon of gas is $4.86, which is 59 cents more than a month ago, and $1.81 more than a year ago," AAA said.
Where is gas most expensive?
The nation’s top 10 most expensive gas markets are California ($6.34), Nevada ($5.49), Hawaii ($5.47), Oregon ($5.41), Washington ($5.40), Illinois ($5.40), Alaska ($5.37), Washington, D.C. ($5.06) and Michigan ($5.05), according to AAA.
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Oil giants show profits
Meanwhile, Exxon Mobil, Shell and others recorded record profits in the first quarter.
The benchmark for global oil prices, Brent crude, averaged at $102.23 a barrel during the first quarter — 67% higher than during the same period last year, according to the Associated Press.
The net profit margin of S&P 500 companies, which include energy giants such as Chevron and Exxon Mobil, in the first quarter has been running at 12.3% based on estimates and earnings reported so far, according to FactSet. That’s down from a peak of 13.1% in the second quarter of last year, but above the pre-COVID-19 level of about 11%.
“Profit margins should be coming down,” Lindsay Owens, executive director of Groundwork Collaborative, a progressive economic policy research group, previously told USA TODAY. Instead, she noted, “they’re actually growing.”
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Shell's adjusted earnings rose to $9.1 billion from $3.2 billion during the same period last year.
BP profits rose to $6.2 billion, which is more than double last year's first quarter profits of $2.6 billion.
At the end of April, Exxon Mobil reported $5.48 billion in profits during the first quarter of 2022 — also more than doubling its profits compared with the same period last year. Revenue for the Irving, Texas-based company was $90.5 billion, far exceeding the revenue of $59.15 billion during the same quarter in 2021.
Also at the end of April, Chevron reported a quarterly profit of $6.26 billion, more than four times its earnings of $1.4 billion in the first quarter of last year. Revenue for the San Ramon, California-based energy producer surged 41%, to $54.37 billion.
According to Reuters, China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, or Sinopec, reported 22.61 billion yuan ($3.45 billion) net profit under Chinese accounting standards for the first quarter of 2022, compared to 17.93 billion yuan ($2.69 billion) last year.
For the first quarter of the year, Phillips 66 reported first-quarter earnings of $582 million, with adjusted earnings of $595 million. In 2021, Phillips 66 reported a first-quarter loss of $654 million, with an adjusted loss of $509 million.
Editor's note: Wyatte Grantham-Philips at USA TODAY contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Gas reaches $5 per gallon in Somerset, PA
