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U.S. Gas Prices Highest In 7 Years, Over $3.50 In Chicago

CHICAGO (CBS Chicago/CBS News) -- If you're filling up your gas tank in the morning, get ready for a little sticker shock.

U.S. gas prices are the highest they've been in seven years.

They are up 40 percent since January.

In Chicago, the average price for regular gas is $3.53. But some gas stations are posting even higher prices – we found one charging $3.89 per gallon.

Fuel costs aren't expected to drop anytime soon.

"We believe it'll rise another 10 to 20 cents at the pump between now and the end of August," Jeanette McGee, a spokesperson for AAA, told CBS MoneyWatch.

The main factors behind the steep climb in gas prices: rising global oil prices, businesses reopening as COVID-19 eases across most of the U.S. and pent-up demand for travel, McGee said.

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