Even as gas prices rise, drivers will save at the pump

The national average price for a gallon of regular has risen for eight straight days — the first time that has happened since last May, according to the auto club AAA — to about $1.79 on Wednesday.

Demand will rise as people drive more, and supplies will tighten when refiners slow down to perform maintenance and switch to more expensive summer fuel blends.

Lower oil prices have led to layoffs at drilling companies and contributed to weakness in the stock market, but cheaper gasoline and heating oil are putting more money in consumers' pockets.

Chris Christopher, director of consumer economics at research firm IHS, said consumers will gradually spend more of their gas savings as they believe that cheaper pump prices will last a while.

Last year, the JPMorgan Chase Institute looked at records from 26 million debit and credit card holders and concluded that gas savings varied greatly by income and region.

Californians usually pay among the highest gas prices, and on Tuesday the average for regular there was $2.41 a gallon — only Hawaiians paid more.