Global| Apr 09 2013U.S. Energy Prices Ease
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The upcoming summer driving season will potentially be a little easier on motorists' wallets. To gain perspective, Haver Analytics constructs seasonal factors to account for the normal seasonal volatility in gasoline prices. Last [...]
The upcoming summer driving season will potentially be a little easier on motorists' wallets. To gain perspective, Haver Analytics constructs seasonal factors to account for the normal seasonal volatility in gasoline prices. Last week, the adjusted retail price fell 8 cents to $3.42 per gallon and prices were down 52 cents from the peak two months ago. The pump price for a gallon of regular gasoline fell by 4 cents last week to $3.61 per gallon. During the last twelve months, prices have fallen 8.4% from the peak of $3.94.
The price for light sweet crude oil slipped $1.31 last week to $94.93 per barrel (-8.3% y/y). Prices have moved erratically sideways since the middle of last year. Yesterday prices slipped further to $93.36. Brent crude oil prices declined to $107.18 per barrel (-14.2% y/y) but fell yesterday to $103.79.
Natural gas prices continued firm. Last week's slip to $4.02 per mmbtu nevertheless left them roughly double last year's level. Yesterday, prices continued to strengthen and rose to $4.18 per mmbtu.
The demand for gasoline fell 1.2% y/y last week. Residual fuel oil needs, used for heating, were up 15.2% y/y and distillate demand gained 5.5% y/y. Inventories of crude oil & petroleum products were roughly unchanged y/y following a build-up to this January's peak.
The energy price data are reported by the U.S. Department of Energy and can be found in Haver's WEEKLY database. The daily figures are in DAILY and the gasoline demand figures are in OILWKLY.
| Weekly Price | 04/08/13 | 04/01/13 | 03/25/13 | Y/Y % | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Regular Gasoline ($ per Gallon, Regular) | 3.61 | 3.65 | 3.68 | -8.4 | 3.62 | 3.52 | 2.78 |
| Light Sweet Crude Oil, WTI ($ per bbl.) | 94.93 | 96.24 | 93.00 | -8.3 | 94.20 | 95.14 | 79.51 |
| Natural Gas ($/mmbtu) | 4.02 | 4.05 | 3.99 | 102.7 | 2.75 | 3.99 | 4.00 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
More Economy in Brief
