Planning a Road Trip This Summer? Get Ready for Higher Gas Prices

Gasoline for that summer road trip will cost a bit more than experts in the federal government were expecting just a month ago.

The government is also predicting higher crude prices, as higher U.S. production is offset by declines elsewhere.

The Energy Information Administration on Tuesday estimated that U.S. oil production will hit a record 12.45 million barrels a day this year and rise again to 13.38 million barrels a day in 2020.

The energy agency raised its forecast for the national average gasoline price through September to $2.92 a gallon from $2.76 a month ago. If the new forecast is right, prices will average 7 cents more than last summer, partly due to higher margins for refining gasoline.

The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline jumped 5 cents a gallon (3.8 liters) over the past two weeks, to $2.97.

Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey says Sunday that gas prices have spiked 66 cents since early January. But Lundberg says dropping crude oil costs could mean that prices at the pump will soon stabilize.

The highest average price in the nation is $4.14 a gallon in the San Francisco Bay Area. The lowest average is $2.45 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The average price of diesel rose 3 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.17.

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