The shooting down of a Malaysian Airlines plane in the Ukraine may not have only caused grief from those who lost loved ones and intensified conflict in the European country, but it might hit gas prices at the pump as well.
Oil prices jumped more than 2 percent following news of the airline tragedy, increases that will soon make their way to the cost of a gallon of gas, AAA officials said.
“Oil rose on concerns that violence could spread in response to the crash,” said Mark Jenkins, a AAA spokesman, in a release. “Gas prices are currently falling more than a half-cent a day, but geopolitical tension could slow the rate of discount at the pump this week.”
The average cost for a gallon of unleaded in Florida was $3.51, compared to $3.56 a week ago. It’s also down from June’s cost of $3.61, and July 2013’s price of $3.62. It’s also nearly 8 cents below the national average.
Sunday marked the 23rd consecutive day prices dropped in Florida, while Georgia is experiencing a streak of 27 days in declines, and Tennessee 25. Among those states, Georgia has the cheapest gas as $3.48 as of Sunday.
