Analyst: Attack on Saudi Arabia not expected to lead to major gas price hikes

Oil prices are likely to jump after an attack on Saudi Arabia that knocked out more than 5% of global oil production, an industry analyst said.

“While there is some good news that motorists should not expect a sudden and major uptick in gas prices, there may be a minor impact beginning mid-week and continuing until Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company, Aramco, is able to restore all production,” said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy.

For now, the attack is not expected to lead to major price hikes, DeHaan said. Cheaper winter gasoline and seasonally weakening demand may soften the blow and impact of the attacks on gas prices.

“However, even after oil production levels return to normal, there is an undeniable factor that will now forever impact oil prices — and that is that Saudi Arabia’s reliability and stability is no longer guaranteed, and this missile strike is evidence that perhaps one of the world’s most stable oil producers may no longer be seen as stable as they were prior to this event,” he said.

In Pittsburgh, gas prices are up 1.5 cents per gallon from last week, averaging $2.78 per gallon, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 731 stations. That’s 8.1 cents per gallon less than a month ago, and 34.1 cents per gallon less than a year ago.

The national average is down 0.4 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $2.55. That’s 6.5 cents per gallon less than a month ago, and 28.9 cents per gallon less than a year ago.