Gas prices continue to rise, but demand so far is holding up

April 14 (UPI) -- Despite emerging concerns about the health of the global economy, retail gasoline prices continue to rise, but remain well below year-ago levels, data released Friday show.

Motor club AAA listed a national average retail price of $3.66 for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline for Friday, up 8 cents per gallon from week-ago levels and 20 cents higher than this time last month.

The trend is mirroring recent trajectory for the price of oil. The price for Brent crude oil, the global benchmark for the price of oil, was trading around $86 per barrel on Friday, a good $10 higher than month-ago levels.

"When the cost of crude oil crosses the $80 a barrel mark, that puts a lot of upward pressure on what we pay at the pump," said Andrew Gross, a spokesperson for the motor club.

Gross added that drivers should continue to see the price at the pump increase unless crude oil prices move lower because oil, along with state taxes and transportation costs, accounts for the bulk of what consumers see at the pump.

Recent data, meanwhile, shows some tolerance to higher prices. The Energy Information Administration, the Energy Department's data cruncher, reported that the total amount of refined petroleum products sent to the market was up 0.7% from last year.

Analysts use that data point as a proxy for total demand. Total gasoline supplied to the market is up 5.5% from the same period last year. Economists at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said in their market report for April, meanwhile, that demand should be robust through the rest of the summer.

That could easily put $4 per gallon in play. Illinois is already at $4.07 on average, while Michigan is posting a $3.70 average for Friday. Western states are all in the $4 range, though higher state taxes keep prices there above the national average.

It's unlikely, however, that prices will return to last year's high-water mark of around $5 per gallon. Prices now are about 40 cents higher than this time last year and EIA expects a full-year average of only $3.42 per gallon.