February 17, 2023 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - The national average for a gallon of gas posted a lackluster week, dipping a mere penny from the previous week to $3.42. Slack demand for gas and waffling oil prices are the primary reasons the national average is stuck in neutral.

“The national average for pump prices dipped to $3.41 before creeping a bit higher over the past two days,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson, “and this trend of small increases could persist into next week.”

According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand dipped slightly from 8.43 million to 8.27 million b/d last week. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks increased by 2.3 million bbl to 241.9 million bbl last week. If gas demand remains low, drivers may see only moderate price increases amid growing total domestic stocks.

Today’s national average of $3.42 is 12 cents more than a month ago, but 9 cents less than a year ago.

Quick Stats

• Since last Thursday, these 10 states have seen the largest changes in their averages: Colorado (+13 cents), Nevada (+12 cents), Indiana (+10 cents), Florida (−9 cents), Maryland (−9 cents), New Mexico (+7 cents), Delaware (−7 cents), Utah (+6 cents), Alabama (−6 cents) and New Jersey (−5 cents).
  
  
• The nation’s top 10 most expensive markets: Hawaii ($4.88), California ($4.68), Nevada ($4.18), Washington ($4.15), Colorado ($4.07), Oregon ($3.81), Alaska ($3.78), Utah ($3.77), Pennsylvania ($3.71) and Idaho ($3.68).

Oil Market Dynamics

At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, WTI decreased by 47 cents to settle at $78.59. Crude prices declined yesterday after the EIA reported that total domestic commercial crude inventories increased substantially by 16.3 million bbl to 471.4 million bbl last week. Earlier this week, crude prices rose due to ongoing market optimism that global oil demand will be higher than anticipated this year after China lifted its coronavirus lockdown restrictions.  

Drivers can find current gas prices along their route using the AAA TripTik Travel planner.
Source: AAA