Gas prices at highest point since 2014 going into Memorial Day weekend
by May 25, 2018 12:38 pm 760 views
Regular gasoline prices were an average of $2.92 per gallon on May 21 in the United States, up 52 cents a gallon from the same time last year heading into Memorial Day weekend, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The price is the highest before Memorial Day weekend since 2014 when the national average was $3.67 per gallon.
Higher crude oil prices, rising gasoline demand and declining gasoline inventories have contributed to the higher prices, according to the EIA. Gasoline prices are projected to be higher this summer because Brent crude oil prices are expected to rise $22 per barrel, from last summer. U.S. gasoline prices have been tied more closely to Brent crude oil prices, rather than West Texas Intermediate prices.
In the week of May 18, 2018, the Brent price increased 51% to an average of $78 per barrel, from the same week in 2017. Gasoline taxes and distribution costs have been stable, and changes in fuel prices have been a result of changes in the price of crude oil and wholesale margins.
Regular gasoline prices this summer season, which runs from April to September, are expected to be an average of $2.90 per gallon, 49 cents higher than last summer. Since the start of the summer driving season in April, the average price of regular gasoline has risen 8%, or by 22 cents per gallon. This fall, gas prices are projected to be an average of $2.79 per gallon. Gasoline prices in the summer rise in the spring because of the switch to the more expensive summer-grade gasoline, from the winter grade.
As of May 11, 2018, the four-week average U.S. gasoline demand rose 1% to 9.4 million barrels per day, from mid-May 2017. This weekend, the number of U.S. travelers is expected to increase by nearly 2 million to more than 41.5 million people, the most since 2005, according to the AAA.
Gasoline inventories have been higher this year than in the previous five-year average, but they’ve been less than 2017 levels for the past five weeks, according to the EIA.
The West Coast region usually has the highest gas prices because of tight supply and demand, distance from additional supplies and gasoline specifications that cost more to meet. The average price in the region has been more than $3 per gallon over the past 20 weeks. The Gulf Coast region typically has the lowest gas prices as it has more than half of the U.S. refining capacity and produces more gasoline than it uses. Through May 21, gas prices in the region have been 27 cents per gallon less than the national average, and West Coast prices have been 56 cents per gallon higher.
In Arkansas, the average price of a regular gallon of gas has risen 56 cents to $2.68 per gallon, from the same time last year, according to the AAA. The price has risen 19 cents, from $2.49 per gallon in April.