Global| Sep 30 2008U.S. Gasoline Prices Down Last Week, Demand Off By Most in Three Years
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The U.S. pump price for a gallon of regular gasoline fell by nine cents last week to the lowest level since early May. The decline to an average of $3.63, according to the U.S. Department of Energy survey, was accompanied by a drop in [...]
The U.S. pump price for a gallon of regular gasoline fell by nine cents last week to the lowest level since early May. The decline to an average of $3.63, according to the U.S. Department of Energy survey, was accompanied by a drop in the average price for all grades of gasoline to $3.77 per gallon.
Yesterday the spot market price for regular gasoline plunged twenty nine cents per gallon to $2.42. The drop lowered spot prices to their lowest since late this past March. In futures trading the November contract closed at $2.40 per gallon.
Weekly gasoline prices can be found in Haver's WEEKLY database. Daily prices are in the DAILY database.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the demand for gasoline fell 1.8% during the last four weeks. That was the largest weekly decline since early 2005 and for the most part reflected the seasonal decline in driving. The weakness in gasoline demand goes beyond that, however, and it was down 3.4% y/y, also the most since mid-2005.
The DOE figures are available in Haver's OILWKLY database.
The price for a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose last week to an average $110.31 per barrel, still down from the high in July of $145.66. Damage to oil rigs from Hurricane Ike was again responsible for the increase. WTI crude prices were down to $96.38 /bbl. yesterday.
Yesterday, the futures price for crude oil also stood at $96.37 per barrel.
Last week, prices for natural gas fell slightly to an average $7.75 per mmbtu (+22.8% y/y). Prices fell further yesterday to $7.14/mmbtu. The high for natural gas prices was in early July at $13.19/mmbtu.
| Weekly Prices | 09/29/08 | 09/22/08 | Y/Y | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Regular Gasoline ($ per Gallon) | 3.63 | 3.72 | 30.3% | 2.80 | 2.57 | 2.27 |
| Light Sweet Crude Oil, WTI ($ per bbl.) | 110.31 | 97.29 | 34.4% | 72.25 | 66.12 | 56.60 |
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.
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