Since Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has decreased by seven cents to $4.60. According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand dropped from 9.41 million b/d to 8.06 million b/d last week, while total domestic gas stocks increased by 5.8 million bbl. The decrease in demand, alongside declining oil prices, has helped to push pump prices down. As these supply/demand dynamics hold, drivers will likely continue to see price relief at the pump. 

At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, WTI increased by 46 cents to settle at $96.30. Although crude prices increased slightly yesterday due to the market expecting demand to remain robust throughout summer, longer-term market concerns about the potential for a recession due to rising interest rates and inflation created headwinds for oil prices earlier this week. Declining crude demand, due to reduced economic activity or continuing COVID-19-related lockdowns in China, could lead prices to follow suit. Additionally, EIA reported that total domestic crude stocks increased by 3.3 million bbl to 427.1 million bbl last week, which is nearly 11 million bbl lower than the storage level last year. 

Largest Weekly Decreases

• Since last Thursday, these 10 states have seen the largest decreases in their averages: Arizona (−21 cents), Texas (−20 cents), California (−19 cents), Ohio (−19 cents), Kentucky (−18 cents), Michigan (−17 cents), Wisconsin (−16 cents), Indiana (−16 cents), Alabama (−16 cents) and Virginia (−15 cents).