For the second week in a row, the nation’s average price of gasoline has declined, falling 1.0 cents from a week ago to $3.62 per gallon today, according to GasBuddy® data compiled from more than 12 million individual price reports covering over 150,000 gas stations across the country. The national average is up 2.7 cents from a month ago but 11.1 cents per gallon higher than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has fallen 3.4 cents in the last week and stands at $3.94 per gallon—11 cents lower than one year ago.
“We’ve seen the national average fade slightly again as oil prices have cooled and our spring peak appears to be more confidently behind us,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “While refinery utilization rates last week indicated that there is still some refinery maintenance work to be done, oil prices have helped put downward pressure on gasoline prices, with oil falling below $80 per barrel last week. In addition, a weaker-than-expected jobs report is adding to some concerns that gasoline demand could remain weak through the summer driving season, which is just a few weeks from beginning. With the seasonal factors behind us, looking ahead, we expect gasoline prices to continue cooling alongside diesel prices as we look forward to Memorial Day weekend.”
OIL PRICES
Last week saw one of the largest weekly declines in oil prices in some time with WTI falling nearly $6 per barrel to close the week under $80/bbl. Brent crude oil also saw a drop of over $5, ending the week at $82 per barrel. While one might expect significant news to be behind the selloff, much of the drop is likely technical, or seasonal in nature, with some closing long positions and a rise in short positions clarifying the market may have seen a recent top. In addition, a weaker-than-expected jobs report saw the U.S. dollar pushed lower, impacting oil prices as well. In addition, while Saudi Arabia raised prices for oil for most regions, the price remained unchanged for U.S. markets, signaling that OPEC is likely to yet again extend production cuts beyond the end of Q2. In early Monday trade, a barrel of WTI crude was up 63 cents to $78.74, a far cry from last Monday’s $83.25 per barrel level. Brent crude was also higher by 55 cents to $83.51 per barrel, down from $88.72 early last Monday.
OIL AND REFINED PRODUCTS
Last week’s report from the EIA showed crude oil inventories rising 7.3 million barrels, to a level 3% below the five-year average, while the SPR gained another 600,000 barrels. Domestic crude production continues to remain unchanged at 13.1 million barrels per day. Gasoline inventories inched higher by 300,000 barrels, while distillate inventories slid 700,000 barrels. Implied gasoline demand, EIA’s proxy for retail demand, rose 195,000 barrels per day to 8.62 million, below GasBuddy’s estimates for the same time period. Refinery utilization saw a surprise 1.0 percentage point drop to 87.5%. Total U.S. oil inventories are up 7.4 million barrels from a year ago.
FUEL DEMAND
According to GasBuddy demand data driven by its Pay with GasBuddy™ fuel card, U.S. retail gasoline demand saw a rise of 0.1% for the week ending May 4 (Sun-Sat). Broken down by PADD region, demand rose 0.4% in PADD 1, rose 1.0% in PADD 2, fell 3.9% in PADD 3, rose 3.2% in PADD 4, and rose 0.1% in PADD 5. GasBuddy models U.S. gasoline demand at 8.719 million barrels per day for the week ending May 4.
GAS PRICE TRENDS
The most common U.S. gas price encountered by motorists stood at $3.39 per gallon, down 20 cents from last week, followed by $3.29, $3.49, $3.59, and $3.19 rounding out the top five most common prices.
The median U.S. gas price is $3.45 per gallon, down 4 cents from last week and about 17 cents lower than the national average.
The top 10% of stations in the country average $5.07 per gallon, while the bottom 10% average $3.06 per gallon.
The states with the lowest average prices: Mississippi ($3.08), Oklahoma ($3.13), Arkansas ($3.14).
The states with the highest average prices: California ($5.31), Hawaii ($4.76), and Washington ($4.63).
DIESEL PRICE TRENDS
The most common U.S. diesel price stood at $3.99 per gallon, unchanged from last week, followed by $3.89, $3.79, $3.69, and $3.59 rounding out the top five most common prices.
The median U.S. diesel price is $3.83 per gallon, down 6 cents from last week and about 11 cents lower than the national average for diesel.
Diesel prices at the top 10% of stations in the country average $4.97 per gallon, while the bottom 10% average $3.35 per gallon.
The states with the lowest average diesel prices: Colorado ($3.48), Oklahoma ($3.52), and Texas ($3.53).
The states with the highest average diesel prices: Hawaii ($5.53), California ($5.32), and Washington ($4.65).