Reaching a price point last seen on March 6, the national average for a gallon of gas fell six cents to $3.38 since last week. Meanwhile, the national average for L2 commercial electricity has held steady for a month.
“The clouds of war overseas are less dark at the moment and the Atlantic is quiet now too, which is taking pressure off of oil prices,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson. “More retail locations east of the Rockies are selling gas below $3 a gallon. Will this trend continue through the end of the year? Stay tuned.”
With an estimated 1.2 million AAA members living in households with one or more electric vehicles, AAA lists the kilowatt-per-hour cost for Level 2 (L2) commercial charging by state.
Thursday, Aug. 22’s national average for a kilowatt of electricity at an L2 commercial charging station is 34 cents.
According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand crept higher last week from 9.04 million b/d to 9.19. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks fell from 222.2 to 220.6 million barrels, but gasoline production increased, averaging 9.8 million daily. Mild gasoline demand, steady supply, and low oil costs may cause pump prices to slide further.
Thursday, Aug. 22’s national average for a gallon of gas is $3.38, 12 cents less than a month ago and 47 cents less than a year ago.
Oil Market Dynamics
At the close of Wednesday, Aug. 21’s formal trading session, WTI fell by $1.24 to settle at $71.93 a barrel. The EIA reports that crude oil inventories decreased by 4.6 million barrels from the previous week. At 426.0 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about 5% below the five-year average for this time of year.
Quick Gas and Electricity Stats
Gas
The nation’s top 10 most expensive gasoline markets are Hawaii ($4.65), California ($4.59), Washington ($4.19), Nevada ($3.95), Oregon ($3.83), Alaska ($3.75), Illinois ($3.73), Washington, D.C. ($3.64), Idaho ($3.58) and Utah ($3.57)
The nation’s top 10 least expensive gasoline markets are Mississippi ($2.93), Oklahoma ($2.98), Tennessee ($2.99), Texas ($3.00), Louisiana ($3.03), South Carolina ($3.03), Alabama ($3.04), Arkansas ($3.07), Kansas ($3.10) and Missouri ($3.11).
Electric
The nation’s top 10 least expensive states for L2 commercial charging per kilowatt hour are Kansas (21 cents), Missouri (24 cents), Delaware (25 cents), Texas (28 cents), Nebraska (29 cents), Utah (29 cents), Wisconsin (29 cents,) Michigan (30 cents), Vermont (30 cents) and North Dakota (30 cents).
The nation’s top 10 most expensive states for L2 commercial charging per kilowatt hour are Hawaii (56 cents), West Virginia (45 cents), South Dakota (43 cents), Arkansas (42 cents), Idaho (42 cents), South Carolina (41 cents), Montana (41 cents), Kentucky (41 cents), Alaska (40 cents) and Tennessee (40 cents).