Gas hits fresh record ahead of July 4
National average gas price climbs to $4.098 a gallon as drivers gear up for one of the biggest driving days of the year.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Retail gas prices rose overnight to a record high for the fourth day in a row, ahead of the July 4 holiday weekend - one of the nation's busiest weekends for travel.
The national average price for a gallon of regular gas rose to an all-time high of $4.098 from $4.092 the day before, a daily survey by motorist group AAA showed Thursday.
Gas prices are now 3% higher than they were last month and nearly 39% higher, or almost $1.15 more, than year-ago levels.
Alaska has the highest gas prices in the nation. Drivers in the state pay an average of $4.689 a gallon for regular gas. California and Hawaii have the second and third-highest average gas prices, at $4.574 and $4.441, respectively.
The state with the lowest gas prices is Oklahoma, where a gallon of gas averages $3.885.
The survey also showed that the national average price for diesel fuel held steady at $4.767 a gallon.
Record high gas prices have pinched consumers and forced many Americans to cut back on the amount of driving they do.
Thirty-one percent of Americans have canceled or shortened their planned holiday weekend vacation because of rising gas prices, according to a CNN/Opinion Research poll released Wednesday.
And last week, AAA said it expects the number of Americans traveling during the July 4 holiday weekend will fall 1.3% to 40.45 million from the 41 million who traveled last year.
Meanwhile, the price for a barrel of oil also rose to a new high, crossing $145 a barrel in electronic trading Thursday. ![]()
-
Minimum wage to $20 an hour. That's what Sally Delk hopes for with a job at the nuclear power plant. More
-
Charlotte Street was the epicenter of urban blight. No longer. Now Bimmers and boats fill driveways. More
-
Ex-convicts like Gregory Headley are 'at the back of the line' in the struggle to find work. More
-
Steve Jobs revived Apple, defying the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression. More
-
Consumers looking to buy electronics for holiday gifts won't have to break the bank this season. More
-
Search firm says it will pay the bill for wireless Internet during the holidays. More
-
Twitter and LinkedIn hook up, signing agreement to let users share information across both platforms. More












