Since Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has decreased by a penny to $3.18. According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total domestic gasoline stocks increased by 3.5 million bbl to 221.6 million bbl last week. Gasoline demand remained low at 8.90 million b/d and flat from the previous week, helping to put downward pressure on pump prices. This easing is likely caused by the traditional post-Labor Day/end of summer driving season dropoff in demand. The price drop has occurred while approximately 16% of crude production in the Gulf of Mexico remains shuttered due to Hurricanes Ida and Nicholas. As the recovery and restoration process continues, pump prices will likely continue to stabilize. However, high crude prices (above $70 per barrel) will contribute to pump prices likely remaining elevated this fall.

At the close of Thursday’s formal trading session, WTI increased by $1.07 to settle at $73.30. Crude prices increased this week following the release of EIA’s recent weekly report that shows total domestic crude inventories decreased by 3.4 million bbl to 414 million bbl. Additonally, crude prices rose after the Federal Reserve signaled it could raise interest rates in 2022 and end its bond-purchase program that has supported the economy since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Largest Weekly Changes

• Since last Thursday, these 10 states have seen the largest changes in their averages: Delaware (+8 cents), Maryland (+5 cents), West Virginia (+4 cents), Illinois (−4 cents), Indiana (−4 cents), Nevada (−4 cents), Ohio (−3 cents), Utah (−3 cents), Kentucky (+2 cents) and Colorado (−2 cents).