Global| Mar 16 2010U.S. Gasoline Prices Move Higher
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Petroleum prices are on the rise with the improved economy. The pump price for regular gasoline rose another four cents last week to $2.79 per gallon which is up by three-quarters since December of 2008. Yesterday, the spot market [...]
Petroleum prices are on the rise with the improved economy. The pump price for regular gasoline rose another four cents last week to $2.79 per gallon which is up by three-quarters since December of 2008. Yesterday, the spot market price for a gallon of regular gasoline reversed a piece of that increase and fell by three cents. The figures are reported by the U.S. Department of Energy and can be found in Haver's WEEKLY & DAILY databases.
The price for a barrel of light sweet crude (WTI) rose last week to $81.76 though it remained down slightly from the early-January high of $82.59. Prices have risen from $71.53 early this past December and are more than double the December 2008 low of $32.37. Yesterday, the upward trend eased and the spot price fell to $79.80.
Demand for gasoline fell 1.8% last week versus one year ago. That decline compared to a 3.9% increase at the beginning of October. The demand for residual fuel oil spiked by one-third with falling temperatures in the Northeast & Midwest. However, distillate demand fell 6.1% y/y, a decline more moderate than the 21.6% y/y shortfall at the beginning of last July. Inventories of crude oil and petroleum products slipped in early-March and were roughly unchanged from one year ago.
U.S. natural gas prices fell further last week to an average $4.46 per mmbtu (+14.9% y/y) despite heavy snow storms through much of the U.S. Prices reached a high of $6.50 early in January. Nevertheless, prices remained double the September low.
| Weekly Prices | 03/15/10 | 03/08/10 | 03/01/10 | Y/Y | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Regular Gasoline ($ per Gallon, Regular) | 2.79 | 2.75 | 2.70 | 46.0% | 2.35 | 3.25 | 2.80 |
| Light Sweet Crude Oil, WTI ($ per bbl.) | 81.76 | 80.19 | 79.26 | 79.0% | 61.39 | 100.16 | 72.25 |
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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