Gasoline prices rose from Friday, Aug. 17, on hurricane fears, but news that the most recent storm is not likely to cause long-term disruptions in Mexican oil production could send prices back down.

Drivers today nationally paid an average of $2.78 a gallon for regular unleaded gasoline, up 2 cents from Friday, according to AAA, of Heathrow, Fla. Prices are down significantly from one month ago, when they were $2.98 a gallon.

The price of midgrade unleaded gasoline rose 2 cents from Friday, to $2.95 a gallon; premium unleaded also rose 2 cents to $3.06 a gallon.

Diesel fuel remained at $2.93 a gallon.

AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report gathers data from as many as 85,000 filling stations nationwide and posts its findings on www.fuelgaugereport.com.

The threat of Hurricane Dean halted about 80 percent of Mexican oil production, but a long-term disruption isn't expected. Experts say U.S. stocks of crude oil will be sufficient in the short term, helping crude oil fall below $70 a barrel today, according to the Associated Press.

In addition, experts say the hurricane poses only a minimal threat to key refineries in the U.S. Gulf Coast.

"It does not seem to have the same kinds of supply implications we had with Rita and Katrina, where we lost power, we lost refineries, we lost stabilization and we lost production," deputy director of the International Energy Agency, William Ramsay, told Reuters.

At $3.89 a gallon, drivers in Kaunakakai, Hawaii, are seeing the highest prices in the country. Drivers in Vinton, Va., are seeing the lowest at $2.36 a gallon, according to GasPriceWatch.com, which uses volunteer spotters to watch prices nationwide.


Courtesy of Autonews

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