Vancouver gas prices jump over national average: Gas Buddy

Heading to the pump anytime soon? Expect to pay significantly more than you did last week.

Average retail gas prices in Vancouver have risen 6.5 cents per litre in the past seven days, rising to 163.8 c/L as of Sunday, according to GasBuddy.

This is considerably higher than the national average, which only saw an increase of 1.5 c/L, rising to 129.03.

Province-wide, the average price in B.C. was up 4.1 c/L, reaching 147.8 c/L — the highest in the country.

“The national average price of gasoline in Canada rose by a couple of cents per litre last week, with British Columbia seeing the largest increase,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “While most provinces saw relatively modest moves, we’re beginning to see seasonal pressures build in Western Canada, with those trends likely to spread eastward in the weeks ahead.”

“Even though oil prices slipped slightly last week amid reduced geopolitical risk, strengthening seasonal factors are expected to intensify, potentially pushing the national average higher through part of the spring.”

The only province that didn’t see a price jump was Alberta, which reacted positively to stronger supply conditions.

Despite the jump, prices in Vancouver are still 24.5 cents per litre lower than they were a year ago, according to GasBuddy.