Global| Jun 15 2010U.S. Gasoline Prices Slip But Crude Oil Prices Rise
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
U.S. gasoline prices slipped again last week. The pump price of regular gasoline of $2.70 per gallon prices was down three cents w/w but that still left prices up more than three-quarters since the December 2008 low. Continuing the [...]
U.S. gasoline prices
slipped again last week. The pump price of regular gasoline of
$2.70 per gallon prices was down three cents w/w but that still left
prices up more than three-quarters since the December 2008 low.
Continuing the earlier reversal, the spot market price for a gallon of
regular gasoline rose yesterday to $2.02 which was the highest level in
four weeks. The figures are reported by the U.S. Department of Energy
and can be found in Haver's WEEKLY &
DAILY databases.
Also moving up was the average price for a barrel of light sweet crude (WTI) to $73.41 last week. Nevertheless the price remained down from the high of $84.23 averaged during April. Yesterday crude prices moved higher to $75.12 per barrel, up from the May 24th low of $66.88.
U.S. natural gas prices also have strengthened recently to an average $4.75 per mmbtu (33.4% y/y), the highest level since early-March. Nevertheless, prices remained down from a high of $6.50 early in January.
Demand for gasoline fell 1.0% last week versus one year ago and that compares to a 2.0% increase last month. The demand for residual fuel oil increased 4.8% while distillate demand surged 12.1% y/y. That's improved from a 12.3% decline during February. Inventories of crude oil and petroleum products slipped in early June but still were up sharply from the early-2010 low.
The energy price data can be found in Haver's WEEKLY database while the daily figures are in DAILY. The gasoline demand figures are in OILWKLY.
| Weekly Prices | 06/14/10 | 06/07/10 | 05/31/10 | y/y | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Regular Gasoline ($ per Gallon, Regular) | 2.70 | 2.73 | 2.73 | 1.1% | 2.35 | 3.25 | 2.80 |
| Light Sweet Crude Oil, WTI ($ per bbl.) | 73.41 | 72.89 | 71.13 | 3.6% | 61.39 | 100.16 | 72.25 |
| Natural Gas Price ($/mmbtu) | 4.75 | 4.46 | 4.18 | 33.6% | 3.95 | 8.88 | 6.97 |
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
