For the fifth straight week, the nation’s average price of gasoline has declined, falling 4.6 cents compared to a week ago to $3.28 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 down 17.9 cents from a month ago and is 48.9 cents per gallon lower than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has fallen 0.2 cents in the last week and stands at $3.65 per gallon-a fresh multi-year low.
“Motorists rejoice! The national average price of gasoline prices has continued to slump for the fifth straight week. With the summer driving season now over, we have much to look forward to for the fall: more drops at the pump as demand drops seasonally, and the changeover to cheaper winter gasoline is just two weeks away,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “As long as we don’t see a major hurricane head into the Gulf and the situation improves in the Middle East, the national average could fall below $3 in the next two months-GasBuddy is already tracking eight states at that level or lower. While diesel prices fell slightly last week, they may rise with winter growing closer and the economy’s likely rebound ahead of the Fed’s expected rate cut. So, while it’s great news for gas prices, diesel will likely soon see its seasonal rise kick in.”
FUEL DEMAND
According to GasBuddy demand data driven by its Pay with GasBuddy™ fuel card, U.S. retail gasoline demand saw a fall of 0.2% for the week ending August 31 (Sun-Sat). Broken down by PADD region, demand fell 1.2% in PADD 1, rose 0.8% in PADD 2, fell 2.0% in PADD 3, fell 0.3% in PADD 4, and rose 0.6% in PADD 5. GasBuddy models U.S. gasoline demand at 9.13 million barrels per day.
GAS PRICE TRENDS
The most common U.S. gas price encountered by motorists stood at $3.19 per gallon, unchanged from last week, followed by $3.29, $2.99, $3.09, and $3.39 rounding out the top five most common prices.
The median U.S. gas price is $3.19 per gallon, down 2 cents from last week and about 9 cents lower than the national average.
The top 10% of stations in the country average $4.42 per gallon, while the bottom 10% average $2.69 per gallon.
The states with the lowest average prices: Texas ($2.81), Mississippi ($2.81), Oklahoma ($2.82).
The states with the highest average prices: Hawaii ($4.58), California ($4.58), and Washington ($4.11).
Biggest weekly changes: Indiana (-11.9¢), Kentucky (-7.6¢), Tennessee (-7.4¢), Texas (-7.3¢), Michigan (-7.1¢)