Oil prices jumped early Monday, pushing local gasoline prices up along with them, following a social media post from President Donald Trump that called Iran’s response to a proposed peace deal “totally unacceptable.”
The price of Brent crude oil, a global benchmark, hit $104 a barrel early Monday, up $2.71, according to The Associated Press. Before the U.S.-Israel war with Iran on Feb. 28, oil prices were trading at $72.79.
On Long Island, gas prices reached an average of $4.54 a gallon Monday, down 1 cent from the $4.55 a gallon reported Friday by AAA Northeast. Despite the small dip over the weekend, prices are nearly 10 cents higher than the $4.45 average price reported last Monday.
On Feb. 27, a day before the war began, average Long Island gasoline prices sat at an average of $2.86 a gallon, according to AAA data provided to Newsday.
The price of gasoline on Long Island and across the nation has a direct relationship with the rising price of oil, traditionally increasing by about 25 cents a gallon for every $10 increase in the price of an oil barrel, local experts say.
