Gasoline Consumption Remains Down

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that gasoline demand is down, but prices at the pump could remain high.

February 08, 2013

WASHINGTON - We might be paying more for gas these days, but we??re also using less of it, the Wall Street Journal reports. The cost of a gallon of regular gasoline rose 18.1 cents to reach $3.538 in a week??s time, the biggest weekly bump in close to 24 months, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Overall, demand has lessened as the economy stays slow and more fuel-efficient vehicles are on the road. But gasoline prices have risen with troubles in pipeline transportation, which bumped U.S. crude oil futures up 12% over the past seven weeks. Also contributing to higher prices are the aftereffects of Superstorm Sandy, which pushed back delivery in the Northeast.

Nationally, retail gas prices have topped $3.52, which the EIA hadn??t predicted until April, with the start of the peak driving season. AAA analysts forecast pump prices reaching $3.60 to $3.80 in the second quarter.

A new survey by NACS points out the futility of driving out of the way to save pennies on a gallon of gasoline. Jeff Lenard, NACS spokesman, lays out the fault in that strategy. On an average fill-up of nine gallons at $3.30 per gallon, "assuming that the car gets 30 miles per gallon at 45 miles per hour, a 20-minute round trip to save approximately 45 cents would consume a half-gallon of gasoline, or $1.65," he said.

Read more in the recently released 2013 NACSRetail Fuels Report.

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