Gas prices have continued an increase but some relief may be on the horizon.
Information released on Thursday from the American Automobile Association (AAA) said prices at the pump rose nationally by 11 cents a gallon in the past week to an average of $3.82 a gallon. The prices have risen due to the price of oil, which was near $80 a barrel last week, but have softened since then.
“Last month’s extreme heat played a role in the recent spike in gas prices due to some refineries pulling back, but now operations are getting back to normal,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson. “Coupled with tepid demand and declining oil prices, this may help take the steam out of the tight supply price jolts we’ve seen lately.”
The Energy Information Administration (EIA) has reported that gas demand decreased slightly from 8.94 to 8.84 million b/d last week. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks increased by 1.5 million bbl to 219.1 million bbl. Lower gas demand amid increasing supply will likely help to slow price increases in the days ahead.
On Saturday, Aug. 5, the national average price for a gallon of unleaded regular gasoline was $3.831.which was level to Friday’s national average. That is nearly nine cents more than a week ago and nearly 31 cents above a month ago. That price is still 28 cents lower than one year ago.
Mississippi continues to have the cheapest average prices in the nation at $3.331 a gallon, which was actually just a tick lower than a day ago’s average of $3.334 a gallon. One week ago, Mississippi’s average price was $3.238 a gallon and it was $2.958 a gallon one month ago. On this date a year ago, the average price was $3.692.
California remains the state with the most expensive gas per gallon, at an average of $5.057.
