The ongoing political and militant conflict in Iraq is reportedly driving up gas prices at the pump in the United States, according to reports from the AAA.
As militants converge on Baghdad in what is the largest counter-offensive against the national government in Iraq, the result is oil has seen an upsurge in overall costs.
It will likely hit the average user hard, where prices nationally are being listed at $3.42, but are expected to rise. Even though the conflict has caused only slight increases at the present, more are expected if the violence continues.
"The conflict in Iraq is likely to have an impact on gas prices. So far, it's had a minimal effect on gas prices. Prices, right now, are $3.41 on average," said Mark Jenkins of AAA Oregon/Idaho.
"That's actually down about one cent. But we do anticipate that to change in the near future. The price of oil shot up about $4.25 during the past week. That was actually the largest weekly increase in 2014," he continued.
Jenkins also argued that consumers can expect to see a "domino effect" at the pump where they could see an increase in the price of a gallon of gas by as much as 10 cents in the near future.
"Anytime the price of oil goes up, that has an impact on the entire world, really. Anybody that's using petroleum is going to be impacted by that. In the case of the United States, refineries are finding that crude oil and turning it into gasoline. Anytime the price of oil goes up, the price of gasoline tends to follow," Jenkins added.
The fears come at a time when traditionally gas prices tend to go down as the summer months begin to hit, but with the conflict in Iraq spreading quickly and engulfing much of the country's oil reserves and refineries, it could be a long summer for consumers who travel largely with their vehicles.
It may be too early to tell whether the ongoing violence in the Middle Eastern country will have long-term effects on the gas market, according to AAA, but it could see rises in prices for the everyday user.
But other experts argue that the oil reserves in Iraq are actually quite safe at the present and while there are fears the conflict could see massive upheaval on the international oil markets, currently those are simply fears, but worth noting as the price at the pump is expected to rise as the conflict continues to devolve into what appears to be a civil war.
