PENNSYLVANIA, USA — Gas prices are finally dropping in central Pennsylvania following a busy travel season; however, the Israel-Hamas war could bring the decreasing trend to an end.
"Most people don’t see the long-term effect of these military conflicts and how they play in our direct life," said Mark Sachleben, a political science professor at Shippensburg University. "All they see is, higher gas prices, higher food prices and ask 'Why is this costing much?' But [conflicts] certainly do matter a great deal."
Experts expect the overseas conflict's effect on gas prices to be limited but, due to the country's location, an expansion of fighting could quickly change that.
"Israel and neighboring Gaza are not real major oil producers, but should the conflict escalate, given that the broader region is a significant oil producer for the globe, that could change," said Jason Kirsch, a AAA Central Penn spokesperson.
In early June of 2022, the war in Ukraine caused already high gas prices to skyrocket in Pennsylvania over $5 for the first time ever due to sanctions imposed on Russia that limited the distribution of crude oil.
A similar spike could happen if distribution becomes affected by escalated fighting in the important oil region surrounding Israel.
"If for some reason the conflict had an impact on shipping or trade routes, if it were to go out of control, it could have a huge impact on us here in terms of trade, oil prices and just the prices of goods and services around the world," said Sachleben.
According to AAA, as of Monday, the average price for a gallon of gas in Pa. is $3.82 compared to $3.87 one week prior.