(Des Moines, IA) -- Gas prices are continuing to go up across the Midwest, including Iowa. The increase started with the first Coronavirus vaccine.
"Since then we've seen millions of Americans vaccinated." Patrick De Haan, Lead Petroleum Analyst at Gas Buddy says. "States have reopened as a result of the drop in coronavirus cases."
That's the demand-side of the price increase. He says OPEC and U.S. oil refiners get the blame for the supply-side of the increase.
"The rise in demand over the past months has not been met by a rise in production."
De Haan says having crude oil production offline increases gas prices another 20-cents a gallon.
He says he expects prices to keep going up.
"As the nation continues to recover, I only see an upward trend in our future." De Haan tells WOWT 6 News.
Iowa's average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas is $2.81 a gallon today. That's a few cents below the national average price of $2.87.