Auto Club: Gas Prices Settle Down After One-Week Spike

Southern California gas prices have reversed course in the last couple of days and are no longer spiking like they were in the days before the Labor Day holiday weekend, according to the Auto Club's Weekend Gas Watch. The average price for self-serve regular gasoline in California is $4.60, which is one cent higher than last week and five cents lower than a year ago today. The average national price is $3.20, which is one cent lower than a week ago and 11 cents lower than on this date last year.

The average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area is $4.64 per gallon, which is three cents higher than last week and four cents more than last year. In San Diego, the average price is $4.69, which is two cents higher than last week and the same as the price this time last year.

On the Central Coast, the average price is $4.62, which is four cents higher than last week and seven cents lower than last year. In Riverside, the average per-gallon price is $4.48, which is two cents more than last week and one cent lower than a year ago. In Bakersfield, the $4.53 average price is one cents higher than last week and ten cents lower than a year ago today.

"According to Oil Price Information Service, the state's gasoline inventory has increased to its highest level in two months, which has had a stabilizing effect on pump prices after some refinery problems caused prices to spike before Labor Day weekend," said Auto Club spokesperson Doug Shupe.

The Weekend Gas Watch monitors the average price of gasoline. As of 9 a.m. on Sept. 4, averages are: