Gas prices across Florida spiked last week to their highest levels of the year before settling back down over the weekend.
Uncertainty over the global price of crude oil, however, could continue to drive them up even further.
According to AAA Auto Club, the average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas reached a high for the year of $3.64, an increase of 13 cents early in the week.
It dropped 8 cents through the weekend and into Monday, and is now at $3.56.
That's the same as this time last month, and 16 cents less than this time last year.
Mark Jenkins, spokesman for AAA, said the global price of crude oil, along with other factors, could mean higher prices at the pump.
"Volatility in the oil market has greatly contributed to rising prices at the pump in recent weeks," Jenkins said in a news release. "Oil prices have been reacting to rising geopolitical tensions between Israel and Iran, and OPEC's decision to extend production cuts, in effort to crimp global fuel supplies."
Last year, the average price reached a high of $3.85 a gallon as the price of oil climbed to nearly $94 a barrel. In 2022, gas averaged $4.89 a gallon as oil peaked at $123.70 a barrel.
Motorists across the greater Tampa Bay region are paying $3.54 on average.
