Global| May 20 2008U.S. Gasoline Prices Up to $3.79 per Gallon. "Seasonal" Will Raise The CPI Report
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The retail price for a gallon of regular gasoline surged seven cents last week to $3.79 per gallon, according to the U.S. Department of Energy survey. That followed an eleven cent increase during the prior week. So far in May prices [...]
The retail price for a gallon of regular gasoline surged seven cents last week to $3.79 per gallon, according to the U.S. Department of Energy survey. That followed an eleven cent increase during the prior week. So far in May prices have risen 25 cents from the April average after that month's 21 cent jump.
During April, a 6.6% surge in the average price of gasoline translated into a 2.0% decline in prices in the April CPI report. The difference was due to seasonal factors. In the CPI report the data are seasonally adjusted and the factor "expected" a 7.7% increase based on historical April price patterns. For May, however, the gas price increase will boost the CPI as the seasonal expects a 3.6% increase and actual prices already have risen by 7.3%. (These numbers don't work out exactly due to product type differences).
Spot market prices for gasoline rose further yesterday. The wholesale price for a gallon of non-oxygenated gasoline was $3.11 per gallon, up five cents from last week's average.
The price of a barrel of WTI crude oil rose ten dollars from the last week of April to $124.94. Yesterday prices rose further to a record $127.06.Natural gas prices recently have moved slightly lower. Yesterday's wholesale price of natural gas at $11.10 per mmbtu was down from Friday's record price and down from last week's average of $11.34/mmbtu. Prices are still nearly double this time last year.
Weekly gasoline prices can be found in Haver's WEEKLY database, daily prices are found in the DAILY database.FOMC Consensus Forecasts from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is available here.
| Weekly Prices | 05/19/08 | 05/05/08 | Y/Y | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Gasoline ($ per Gallon) | 3.79 | 3.72 | 17.8% | 2.80 | 2.57 | 2.27 |
| Light Sweet Crude Oil, WTI ($ per bbl.) | 124.94 | 123.0 | 96.4% | 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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