These US metros saw the great spike in gas prices this week

(NEXSTAR) – Gas prices continued to skyrocket this week as the war in Iran created havoc in the oil sector, but a handful of U.S. cities saw larger-than-average price increases.

Oil prices have surged, with Brent up from near $70 late last week, as the war has expanded and included areas critical to the production and movement of oil and gas in the Middle East. Much will depend on what happens with the Strait of Hormuz off Iran’s coast, where roughly a fifth of the world’s oil typically sails.

On Friday afternoon the price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, leaped another 8.5% to settle at $92.69. It briefly rose above $94 to touch its highest level since September 2023.

In the U.S., the national average price of gas jumped from $2.98 a gallon of regular last week to $3.32, according to AAA.

Price increases were painfully pronounced in the following metro areas over the last week, according to Gas Buddy’s Patrick De Haan:

De Haan, who is head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, told Nexstar that there’s no uniform way price increases in the short term, but gas stations across the country will ultimately be affected.

“Some states go faster or some states go slower, so think of the increases as like a bit of a marathon,” De Haan said. “Everyone is going to get to the same destination, but it’s kind of haphazard in how stations are trying to raise prices and it varies in every state.”

As of Thursday, the 10 most expensive states for gas were California ($4.81), Washington ($4.44), Hawaii ($4.43), Oregon ($4.04), Nevada ($3.87), Alaska ($3.72), Arizona ($3.58), Illinois ($3.36), Pennsylvania ($3.35), and Michigan ($3.27), according to AAA.

The least expensive were Oklahoma ($2.79), Mississippi ($2.81), Kansas ($2.83), Tennessee ($2.84), Texas ($2.87), Arkansas ($2.90), Louisiana ($2.90), Wyoming ($2.90), North Dakota ($2.91), and Missouri ($2.92). 

The U.S. government gave details Friday about a plan President Donald Trump announced earlier to offer insurance to ships crossing the strait, but it had little effect on the market.

If oil prices spike further, like to $100 per barrel, and stay there, some analysts and investors say it could be too much for the global economy to withstand.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.