Courtesy of Doug Short.
It’s time again for my weekly gasoline update based on data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Rounded to the penny, Regular rose 12 cents and Premium 11. This is the largest weekly increase since the 15-cent pop in mid-July 2013.
According to GasBuddy.com, Hawaii has the highest average price at $3.05. The highest continental average price is in New York at $2.42. Utah has the cheapest Regular at $1.88.
How far are we from the interim high prices of 2011 and the all-time highs of 2008? Here’s a visual answer.
The next chart is a weekly chart overlay of West Texas Light Crude, Brent Crude and unleaded gasoline end-of-day spot prices (GASO). WTIC closed today at 49.83, an 8.8% bounce from last week.
Texas Crude had been trading in a volatile sideways pattern with a slightly falling trend for most of January but has risen about 19% since its interim low on January 28th.
The volatility in crude oil and gasoline prices has been clearly reflected in recent years in both the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE). For additional perspective on how energy prices are factored into the CPI, see What Inflation Means to You: Inside the Consumer Price Index.
The chart below offers a comparison of the broader aggregate category of energy inflation since 2000, based on categories within Consumer Price Index (commentary here).
Here are some additional commentaries related to gasoline prices:
