U.S. Energy Prices Increase
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
- Gasoline prices rebound.
- Crude oil prices continue to strengthen.
- Natural gas prices ease.
Retail gasoline prices rose to $4.11 gallon in the week ended April 25 (43.0% y/y) from $4.07 per gallon the prior week. The gain followed five straight weeks of decline. Prices set a record $4.32 per gallon in the second week of March. Haver Analytics adjusts the gasoline price series for normal seasonal variation, and the seasonally adjusted price was $4.18 per gallon from $4.14 in the prior week.
The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil increased to $103.88 per barrel (67.1% y/y) in the week ended April 22 after rising to $101.44 per barrel in the prior week. These compare to a high of $113.33 averaged in the fourth week of March. Yesterday, the price fell to $98.44 per barrel. The average price of Brent crude oil was $108.40 per barrel ($64.1%), up from $106.27 the prior week. The price was $100.98 per barrel yesterday.
The price of natural gas fell in the week ended April 22 to $7.10/mmbtu (157.3% y/y) after rising to $6.64 in the previous week. The price has risen from a low of $1.52/mmbtu averaged in the third week of June 2020. Yesterday, the price declined to $6.42/mmbtu.
In the four weeks ended April 15, gasoline demand declined 3.0% y/y. Growth in demand for all petroleum products weakened 1.5% y/y. Growth in crude oil input to refineries eased to 5.5% y/y. Gasoline inventories decreased 1.1% y/y while crude oil inventories declined 11.6% y/y.
The supply of gasoline inventories in the week ended April 15 was1 26.8 days, down slightly from 27.1 days in the previous week. The supply of crude oil fell to 26.2 days from 26.7 days in the prior week.
These data are reported by the Energy Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy. The price data can be found in Haver's WEEKLY and DAILY databases. Greater detail on prices, as well as the demand, production and inventory data are in USENERGY.
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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