South Carolina gas prices creep up ahead of holiday travel, end of year

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – Gas prices in South Carolina are pretty steady heading into a week notorious for holiday travel, with only a slight uptick in cost.

In the state, average prices are up but 0.8 cents per gallon in the past week, leaving motorists in the Lowcountry with an average gas price of $2.72 per gallon, according to GasBuddy’s survey of over 3,000 stations in South Carolina.

South Carolina’s gas prices are 2.9 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and 12.6 cents per gallon lower than a year ago.

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In the Lowcountry, Monday morning’s lowest recorded gas price was found at a Murphy USA in Goose Creek, located at 603 St. James Avenue with a gallon going for $2.66. Saturday night, GasBuddy also recorded a price of $2.52 per gallon at a North Charleston Circle K located at 8410 Dorchester Road.

Statewide, the cheapest gallon of gas was selling for $2.33 while the most expensive cost $3.32, just barely missing the mark of a full dollar margin.

“We’ve seen a second consecutive weekly rise in the national average, driven by price cycling that led stations in the Great Lakes region to restore their margins to normal levels ahead of millions of motorists traveling for Christmas,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said.

“With oil prices continuing to move sideways, gas prices may hold near recent levels in the coming week… As families travel for the holidays, this volatility at the pump serves as a great reminder to check prices before filling up to save as much as 25 to 50 cents per gallon—a trend that will likely persist into 2025,” De Haan said. “As we close out the year, motorists can look forward to some good news at the pump in 2025.”

On the national level, gas prices rose 3.1 cents per gallon last week, with gas prices seeing an overall average of $3.01 per gallon.

That average is down 2.6 cents per gallon from a month ago and 9.2 cents per gallon lower than a year ago.

Diesel prices have also seen a small rise to the tune of 0.6 cents per gallon in the past week, leaving an average price at the pump of $3.478 per gallon.

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