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Economy in Brief
U.S. Construction Spending Unexpectedly Dips in May After Seven Straight Monthly Rises
The value of construction put-in-place ticked down 0.1% m/m (+9.7% y/y) in May...
Developed Economies Manufacturing Sectors Hit Hard in June
Among the 18 countries in the table that report manufacturing PMI data in June, only four show m/m improvements...
U.S. Income Gained, Spending Slowed in May
Personal income growth remained solid while household spending slowed in May...
U.S. Chicago Business Barometer Falls Back in June to the Lowest Level since Aug. '20
The ISM-Chicago Purchasing Managers Business Barometer fell to 56.0...
U.S. Unemployment Claims Edged Down
Initial claims for unemployment insurance filed in the week ended June 25 declined by 2,000 to 231,000...
Viewpoints
Commentaries are the opinions of the author and do not reflect the views of Haver Analytics.
by Tom Moeller December 4, 2018
Gasoline prices fell to an average $2.45 per gallon (-2.0% y/y) from $2.54 during last week. Prices have fallen from an average high of $2.90 early last month, to the lowest level since December 2017. Haver Analytics constructs factors to adjust for the marked seasonal variation in prices. The seasonally-adjusted gasoline price fell eight cents last week to $2.55 per gallon.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices fell to an average of $51.09 per barrel last week (-11.6% y/y) from $55.06 in the prior week. Prices have fallen steadily since the peak of $75.11 in early-October to the lowest price since October 2017. Yesterday, prices were $52.95 per barrel. Brent crude oil prices declined to $59.77 per barrel (-5.5% y/y) last week from $62.85 during the prior week. Yesterday, prices were $61.92 per barrel.
Natural gas prices eased last week to $4.47/mmbtu (+53.5% y/y) from $4.67 in the prior week. Prices were up from the low of $2.52 last February.
During the latest four weeks, gasoline demand fell 0.9% y/y; total petroleum product demand rose 5.6% y/y. Gasoline inventories strengthened 4.9% y/y, but inventories of all petroleum products eased 0.6% y/y. Crude oil input to refineries has risen 0.5% y/y in the last four weeks.
These data are reported by the U.S. Department of Energy. The price data can be found in Haver's WEEKLY and DAILY databases. Greater detail on prices, as well as the demand, production and inventory data, along with regional breakdowns, are in OILWKLY.
Weekly Energy Prices | 12/03/18 | 11/26/18 | 11/19/18 | Y/Y % | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Retail Gasoline ($ per Gallon Regular, Monday Price) | 2.45 | 2.54 | 2.61 | -2.0 | 2.47 | 2.31 | 2.03 |
Light Sweet Crude Oil, WTI ($ per bbl, Previous Week's Average) | 51.09 | 55.06 | 56.94 | -11.6 | 50.87 | 43.22 | 48.90 |
Natural Gas ($/mmbtu, LA, Previous Week's Average) | 4.47 | 4.67 | 4.23 | 53.5 | 2.96 | 2.49 | 2.62 |