Gas prices in LA soar to over $6 a gallon as oil keeps climbing

Published

2 years ago

September 21, 2023

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A regular gallon of gas costs more than $6 on average in some parts of the Los Angeles area while prices reached as high as $7 in some parts of California on Tuesday as dwindling oil supplies put the squeeze on American motorists.

It was the first time since October of last year that gas in LA and Orange Counties surpassed the $6 threshold, according to Fox 11 Los Angeles TV.

The national average of a gallon of gas stood at $3.88, rising some eight cents in the span of a week, according to the American Automobile Association.

At this time last year, a gallon of gas was 18 cents cheaper nationally, AAA said.

Relief doesn’t appear to be on the horizon, at least not in the short term.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth predicted that oil prices would get close to $100 a barrel.

Supply is tightening, inventories are drawing the trends would suggest, we are certainly on our way, we are getting close (to $100/bbl), Wirth, who heads the nation’s second largest energy producer, told Bloomberg TV on Monday.

The uptick in gas prices has fueled higher rates of inflation — forcing consumers to shell out more for fuel while limiting discretionary spending.

As of Tuesday, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline costs motorists in Los Angeles County, the nation’s most populous, $6.03.

A gallon of gas would set back drivers in neighboring Orange County $6.02, according to the latest data from AAA.

The most expensive gasoline in the state could be found in Alpine County, the area that lies about 120 miles east of Sacramento and which straddles the border with Nevada.

The average price of a gallon of regular fuel in Alpine County cost $6.99, according to AAA.

California has traditionally been plagued by the nation’s highest gas prices on average due mainly to the state’s high taxation rate as well as its clean energy regulations.

The Golden State hits drivers with both an excise tax on a gallon of gas as well as a sales tax, according to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration.

The tax revenue is used by the state to fix and maintain roadways and mass transit systems.

In October 2022, gas prices in LA hit a record $6.49 — prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration to distribute gas rebates to Californians ranging from $200 to $1,050 depending on income level.

The most significant factor that determines gas prices in California and the rest of the nation is the price of oil.

Oil prices reached $95 a barrel for the first time this year on Tuesday — a trend fueled by cuts in supply by petroleum producers Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, was trading at around $95.33 per barrel as of Tuesday morning.

The US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, was priced at $91.48 per barrel.

On June 27, WTI stood at $67.70 per barrel.

“Oil costs are putting upward pressure on pump prices, but the rise is tempered by much lower demand,” AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said.

“The slide in people fueling up is typical, with schools back in session, the days getting shorter, and the weather less pleasant,” Gross added.

“But the usual decline in pump prices is being stymied for now by these high oil costs.”

World

Putin has agreed Ukraine can have ‘NATO-style’ security guarantee, Trump envoy says

Published

45 mins ago

August 17, 2025

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Putin has agreed Ukraine can have 'NATO-style' security guarantee, Trump envoy says

Vladimir Putin has agreed to allow Ukraine’s allies to offer it a NATO-like security guarantee as part of an eventual deal to end the war, according to US special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Mr Witkoff said the Russian president agreed to the move when he met with Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday.

Speaking to CNN on Sunday, Mr Witkoff, who was by the US president’s side at the summit, said: “We were able to win the following concession: That the United States could offer Article 5-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in NATO.”

Article 5 is a core principle of the 32-member collective, which states that an armed attack against one or more of its members shall be considered an attack against all. It has only been invoked once, by the US, in the wake of the 9/11 attacks in 2001.

Russia has repeatedly insisted that Ukraine cannot be allowed to join NATO and has dismissed the idea that NATO member forces could be peacekeepers under some sort of ceasefire deal.

Mr Witkoff, who has previously met with Mr Putin to discuss an end to the Ukraine war, said Friday’s summit was the first time he had heard the Russian president agree to the suggestion of NATO-like protection – and called it “game-changing”.

His comments came as Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels.

The Ukrainian president said in a post on X: “This is a historic decision that the United States is ready to take part in security guarantees for Ukraine.

“Security guarantees, as a result of our joint work, must really be very practical, delivering protection on land, in the air, and at sea, and must be developed with Europe’s participation.”

Ms von der Leyen, speaking at a news conference with the Ukrainian president, said the European Union “is ready to do its share”.

EU leaders to join Zelenskyy at White House

Sunday afternoon also saw Ms von der Leyen and Mr Zelenskyy dial in to a meeting with the coalition of the willing, a peacekeeping alliance of European leaders – some of whom will accompany Mr Zelenskyy to meet with Mr Trump tomorrow.

Ms von der Leyen will be at the crunch talks in Washington DC, as will Sir Keir Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Italy’s Giorgia Meloni.

Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte will also be in attendance, after the US president reportedly extended an invitation to European leaders.

Mr Putin has reportedly made demands to take control of the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine during his summit with Mr Trump as a condition for ending the war.

In exchange, Russia would give up other Ukrainian territories held by its troops, according to several news reports citing sources close to the matter.

Russian troops currently occupy large parts of the two regions and, in September 2022, Moscow announced it was officially annexing them, alongside the Kherson and Zaporizhia regions, in a move rejected and condemned as illegal by the West.

Mr Trump is said to be planning to urge Mr Zelenskyy to agree to the conditions as part of a peace deal to end the war.

That’s despite the Ukrainian president previously ruling out formally handing any territory to Moscow, which he says would be impossible under the country’s constitution, and would deprive Ukraine of defensive lines and open the way for Moscow to conduct further offensives.

In coordinated statements following the Alaska summit, European leaders said Mr Zelenskyy must play a greater role in future talks, and that peace cannot be achieved without him.

The US president said the Washington talk with Mr Zelenskyy could potentially pave the way for a three-way meeting with Mr Putin.

On Saturday, Downing Street insisted Sir Keir and other allies stand ready to support the next phase of talks to end the war.

“At the meeting that will take place at the White House tomorrow, the Prime Minister, with other European partners, stands ready to support this next phase of further talks and will reaffirm that his backing for Ukraine will continue as long as it takes,” a statement from No 10 said.

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