Industry experts say the nation’s gasoline prices have been unstable of late, but the average in this part of the state has remained steady.
Average gasoline prices in Pennsylvania have fallen 0.9 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.62 per gallon on Tuesday, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 5,269 stations in Pennsylvania.
Gas prices are stable in Western Pennsylvania this week at $3.655 per gallon, according to AAA East Central. The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in Bradford is $3.703; in Brookville, $3.521; in DuBois, $3.424; in Erie, $3.671; and in Warren, $3.699.
Prices in Pennsylvania are 1.5 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and stand at $1.38 per gallon lower than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has fallen 3.7 cents in the last week and stands at $3.85 per gallon.
According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Pennsylvania was priced at $2.99 per gallon on Monday while the most expensive was $4.27 per gallon, a difference of $1.28 per gallon.
The national average price of gasoline has fallen 1.4 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.56 per gallon on Tuesday. The national average is up 2.9 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands $1.41 per gallon lower than a year ago, according to GasBuddy data.
“It has been a quiet week for the national average, with little overall movement in average gas prices nationally even as oil prices have been a bit unstable,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “Some states have seen minor increases while others have seen decreases, and the mixed bag is likely to continue for the time being with oil prices a bit all over the place.”
According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand decreased slightly from 9.22 to 9.19 million barrels per day last week. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks increased by 2.1 million barrels to 220.9 million barrels. Lower gas demand amid increasing supply has helped to limit pump price increases.
“While gasoline demand continues to inch up, we could see additional pressure on pump prices, while the price of diesel continues to see downward movement,” De Haan said. “While the uncertainty over the direction of the economy is a major player in preventing oil’s rise, inventories of oil and gasoline do remain tight, preventing much additional downward movement as well. We’ll have to see which of those factors emerges as a winner to predict when the next large movement in prices could be. We’re also seeing more tropical activity in the Atlantic that could pose challenges in the weeks ahead as hurricane season ramps up.”
