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April Refining Margins in California Surged to Highest Since September 2023

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Gross profit margins for California oil refiners rose to $1.24 per gallon in April, the highest since September 2023, according to data shared by the California Energy Commission earlier this week.

This compares to gross margins of $1.02 in March and $0.97 for the corresponding month last year.

In the pre-Iran war months of February and January, gross profit margins were reported at $0.77/gallon and $0.49/gallon respectively.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, non-profit Consumer Watchdog said the refiners are expected to report a further increase in margins in May.

In April 2026, Californian refiners sold a total of 929.95 million gallons of gasoline for an estimated aggregate gross margin of $1.153 billion, which compares with 962.6 million gallons of gasoline sold for an estimated aggregate gross margin $981.85 million in March, the CEC data showed.

For the corresponding month last year, 1.01 billion gallons of gasoline were sold for an aggregate gross margin of $979.4 million.

In December 2025, California refiners had reported an estimated aggregate gross margin of $413.41 million after the sale of 939.57 million gallons of gasoline.

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