L.A. gas prices barely budge

Most likely it's just a pause, considering that oil rose again today and is priced at more than $108 a barrel. An average gallon of regular in the L.A. area is $4.092, according to the government survey, up less than a penny over last week. That's also the highest of any metro area surveyed by the Department of Energy. Gas prices are never easy to make sense of, and it's especially true with all the cross-currents going on in the world. Normally, we would expect steadily rising prices this time of year as the summer driving season approaches and refineries transition to the more expensive summer blend. This year? No one seems very confident about making projections.