Gas prices spike again in California

Gasoline prices hit a record $4.614 for a gallon of regular in California Saturday, mainly due to refinery and pipeline problems, industry analysts said. The average price of gas in the state went up 12.8 cents a gallon overnight, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing the AAA survey. The surge is due in part to an ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance being put out of commission by a power outage Monday, the newspaper said. The facility was put back online Friday. Some gas stations were charging more than $5 a gallon for regular, and some have stopped selling gasoline because the wholesale price is prohibitive. Wholesale prices receded a bit Friday after peaking Thursday, the Times reported. Prior to Saturday, the record price for a gallon of regular had been $4.610, set in 2008. Adjusted for inflation, that would be $4.93 in 2012 dollars, the newspaper said. With the ExxonMobil refinery back online, analysts said prices should start to come back down next week, but prices in the state will likely remain above the national average because of other refinery and pipeline problems. The average price of a gallon of regular in the Los Angeles area was $4.661 Saturday. In San Francisco it was $4.689.