NATIONAL AVERAGE DECLINES FOR 4TH STRAIGHT WEEK AHEAD OF MEMORIAL DAY

For the fourth consecutive week, the nation’s average price of gasoline has decreased by 3.5 cents from a week ago to $3.55 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 12.0 cents from a month ago but is 2.2 cents per gallon higher than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has fallen 3.3 cents in the last week and stands at $3.86 per gallon—12 cents lower than one year ago.

“The news continues to be good for motorists ahead of Memorial Day, with gasoline prices again falling, making it four straight weeks of declines for the national average as we get closer to the start of the summer driving season,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “The good news doesn’t necessarily end there, either. GasBuddy’s Summer Travel Forecast, coming out tomorrow, will also give motorists mostly good news for the rest of the summer, predicting that gas prices over the next few months will stay far under record levels and should continue trending lower as we get closer to July 4. While the Middle East, hurricane season, refinery maintenance and any other unexpected disruptions or weather remain wildcards, this summer is shaping up to be mostly favorable for drivers hitting the road.”

OIL PRICES

The price of oil rallied for much of the week last week, but with new attention on the death of Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi, oil markets were seeing some of the gains slip back. In early Monday trade, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down 52 cents to $79.56 per barrel, up under $1 from last Monday’s $78.83 per barrel start. Brent crude was also in the red, slipping 40 cents to $83.56 per barrel in early Monday trade. Oil prices remain range-bound, trading in the upper-$70s and low-$80s in recent weeks as OPEC continues to sit on ample spare capacity, likely preventing a meaningful rise out of the established range.

OIL AND REFINED PRODUCTS

Last week’s report from the EIA showed oil inventories falling 2.5 million barrels as refinery utilization jumped above 90%. U.S. crude inventories stand down nearly 11 million barrels from a year ago, while the SPR rose another 600,000 barrels, 2.3% above its year-ago level. Gasoline inventories fell 200,000 barrels but remain over 9 million barrels above last year. Distillate inventories were unchanged, holding over 10 million barrels higher than a year ago. Implied gasoline demand rose a meager 78,000 barrels to 8.88 million, while GasBuddy’s figures were nearly identical at 8.91 million barrels. Refinery utilization reached 90.4% of capacity, rising 1.9 percentage points on the week.

GAS PRICE TRENDS

The most common U.S. gas price encountered by motorists stood at $3.49 per gallon, unchanged from last week, followed by $3.39, $3.59, $3.69, and $3.29 rounding out the top five most common prices.
The median U.S. gas price is $3.45 per gallon, unchanged from last week and about 10 cents lower than the national average.
The top 10% of stations in the country average $5.05 per gallon, while the bottom 10% average $2.97 per gallon.
The states with the lowest average prices: Mississippi ($3.00), Oklahoma ($3.03), Louisiana ($3.07).
The states with the highest average prices: California ($5.14), Hawaii ($4.73), and Washington ($4.54).

DIESEL PRICE TRENDS

The most common U.S. diesel price stood at $3.99 per gallon, unchanged from last week, followed by $3.79, $3.69, $3.89, and $3.59 rounding out the top five most common prices.
The median U.S. diesel price is $3.79 per gallon, unchanged from last week and about 7 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 $3.26 per gallon.
The states with the lowest average diesel prices: Texas ($3.38), Oklahoma ($3.39), and Louisiana ($3.51).
The states with the highest average diesel prices: Hawaii ($5.51), California ($5.20), and Washington ($4.57).

NOTE: Fuel demand data for the week ending 5/18 is currently pending and will be added when available.