President Joe Biden warned oil and gas companies against increasing prices for consumers as Hurricane Ian neared landfall along Florida's southwest coast.
Biden said at the beginning of the conference on hunger in America, do not use this as an excuse to raise gasoline prices or gouge the American people.
Biden said that if the hurricane happens, there will be no excuse for price increases at the pump and he will ask federal officials to determine whether price gauging is going on. Biden said that the industry should do the right thing.
Average gas prices have jumped significantly in Florida as the hurricane approached. AAA put the statewide average at just under $3.40 a gallon, six-tenths of a cent higher than a week ago.
A 99 day run of falling pump prices nationally ended recently, and the 14 week decline was the longest streak since 2015. The average price in the United States had risen past $5 a gallon and $6 in California in June as the economic recovery and an increase in travel boosted demand for gasoline and Russia's war in Ukraine caused a spike in oil prices.
Gasoline prices have been falling since mid-June due to concerns of a global recession that will reduce demand for energy, as well as trends in global oil prices and crude.
Many energy analysts believe that prices are more likely to rise than fall in the next few months. Changes in sentiment about the economy, Russia's war against Ukraine and even hurricane season — all of which make predictions uncertain.
A spokeswoman for the American Petroleum Institute said that the industry is focused on delivering fuels where they are needed most while ensuring the safety of our workforce during the hurricane.
Gasoline prices are determined by market forces, not individual companies, and claims that the price at the pump is nothing but a function of supply and demand, spokeswoman Andrea Woods said.
After strengthening to the threshold of Category 5 status, the hurricane slashed the state with heavy rain and pushed a devastating storm surge. According to the National Hurricane Center, Ian grew to a Category 4 hurricane overnight with top winds of 155 mph 250 kph.
The storm trudged on a track that would have it making landfall north of the heavily populated Fort Myers area, forecasters said could be inundated by a storm surge of up to 18 feet 5.5 meters.