Houston — US retail gasoline pump prices have moved steadily lower throughout August even after gasoline demand hit a record high earlier in the month, a new blog post from automotive club AAA said on Tuesday morning.
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According to AAA data, the average price for regular grade gasoline at the pump was $2.61/gal as of Tuesday morning, down 3 cents/gal from one week ago, down 17 cents/gal from one month ago, and down 22 cents/gal from one year ago.
AAA says that almost half of all US fuel outlets are selling gasoline below $2.50/gal.
Cheap gasoline this summer has no doubt encouraged Americans to spend more time in their cars and trucks: implied US gasoline demand, which the US Energy Information Administration measures as product supplied, hit a new recorded high of 9.932 million b/d the week that ended August 9, according to data released earlier this month.
AAA says that US gasoline will likely move down from this record high in the weeks to come, which all else equal, should help put some downward pressure on retail fuel prices.
"Demand recorded at a surprising all-time high, but it is expected to drop in the coming weeks as summer comes to an unofficial end," Casselano said.
--Seth Clare, seth.clare@spglobal.com
--Edited by Alisdair Bowles, alisdair.bowles@spglobal.com