Gasoline topped $2 a gallon at the nation's gas pumps Thursday, according to the daily survey by AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. AAA says the average price for a gallon of regular gas was $2.009 Thursday, up from $1.933 just a week ago and the highest price since Nov. 20, when the average in the AAA survey hit $2.02. A year ago, the average price was $3.261 a gallon. Prices peaked in July last year at $4.114 a gallon. Gasoline prices are rising because of higher crude oil costs, which account for about the half the cost of making motor fuel Crude oil for future delivery was trading for $53.56 a barrel Thursday at the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest level since December. FIND MORE STORIES IN: West Coast | New York Mercantile Exchange | Oil Price Information Service | Rocky Mountain | Energy Information Agency The weekly Energy Information Agency survey showed gasoline was most expensive on the West Coast and the Rocky Mountain states had the lowest regional average price. The daily average price for diesel fuel was $2.202 Thursday, up from $2.176 Wednesday but down from $2.255 a month ago and $4.027 a year ago, according to AAA and OPIS.

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