Fuel Prices Rise Another 4 Cents

As political tensions in Egypt and the Middle East continue, so does the spike in Southern California gas prices -- by about another four cents per gallon.

Not helping, says the Daily Finance website, is Wikileaks' release of what it claims are confidential cables from U.S. embassy officials. In them, a senior Saudi government oil executive purportedly says that Saudi Arabia's oil reserves "may have been overstated by 300 billion barrels -- about 40%." The headline on the Daily Finance post announces: "Cheap Oil Is Gone for Good."

The average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Long Beach-Los Angeles region is $3.408 per gallon, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California’s Weekend Gas Watch. It puts that at 3.7 cents more than a week ago, seven cents higher than last month, and 43 cents higher than a year ago. 

Prices for a gallon of regular elsewhere in the state: Orange County, $3.406; the Inland Empire, $3.391; San Diego, $3.415; and the Central Coast, $3.454.

The stations currently selling the cheapest gas the Belmont Shore-Naples area are listed below. Local prices are according to AOL.autos.com and GasBuddy.com and reflect prices reported within the last 24 hours.

ARCO at 2330 E. Junipero (at Seventh Street)

• Regular - $3.29
• Premium - $3.48

ARCO at 1001 Redondo (at 10th Street)

• Regular - $3.29
• Premium - $3.49

Vons Gas (3 cents less with membership) at 1818 Ximeno Ave. (at Atherton Street) 

• Regular - $3.31
• Premium - $3.54

Sunco Gas at 3605 E. Seventh St. (at Loma)

• Regular - $3.37
• Premium - $3.57

Go to http://autos.aol.com/cheap-gas-prices/ for more prices in the region. If you are planning a trip this weekend, go to http://www.gasbuddy.com/Trip_Calculator.aspx and plug in your travel plans to find out how much it will cost you.