TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - Gas prices are higher in Toledo this year compared to last July 4, but there’s a reason.

Thursday night, the national average was hovering right around the same mark it was last Fourth of July, but that is not the case in Toledo.

According to GasBuddy, Toledo’s average this holiday is $3.48 per gallon, much higher than last July Fourth. But, much lower than in 2022 when we were still feeling the initial effects of price surges due to the war in Ukraine.

Experts say it is likely because of how gas stations in our region compete. They do a practice called price cycling.

It is something that has happened in places like the Great Lakes Region for a while. Price cycling occurs when there is aggressive competition between gas stations. Stations will drop their prices gradually, trying to undercut their competition, until they run out of room to undercut. That is when you see prices shoot up overnight.

Analysts say the current price cycle does not line up perfectly with last July but, the trends are consistent with last year.

“Gas prices in Toledo tend to jump. It tends to be more like a ride on Top Thrill 2. Prices spiked. Then they plunge. Then they spike. So we’re probably comparing things a little bit differently compared to last year. That is the price cycles don’t exactly line up. All in all, the national average basically is exactly what it was a year ago,” Patrick De Haan, a spokesperson for GasBuddy said.

Oil is more expensive than it was a few weeks ago, which helped push prices higher in some parts of the country. The things experts are watching moving into the second half of the summer will be the volatility of the oil markets and how hurricanes may impact refineries in the Gulf.