National averages for a gallon of gasoline at the pumps in the United States have now fallen for the third straight week, shedding a total of 4.7 cents compared to a week ago, with the average price per gallon now sitting at $3.72, according to GasBuddy data.
AAA puts the national average price per gallon slightly higher on Monday at $3.76, compared to $3.79 a week ago.
Based on GasBuddy data, the national average is now down 3 cents from a month ago, but over 34 cents higher per gallon than a year ago.
For diesel, we've seen national averages fall 2.4 cents in the past week, now sitting at $5.28 per gallon according to GasBuddy, and $5.309 according to AAA.
"For the third consecutive week, we've seen the national average price of gasoline decline, and while it's good news for most regions with a continued drop in prices, the Northeast is bucking the trend and seeing a noticeable jump due to tight supply," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.
De Haan noted that the national average is now nearing the previous low from September, after which refinery issues caused a surge in prices in the West and the Great Lakes region.
"With those issues addressed, the West has seen prices plummet, including a nearly 90 cent per gallon decline in California in less than a month. Compare that to the Northeast, where prices have jumped some 10-25 cents per gallon, demonstrating there's much regionality to current gasoline price trends," he said.
De Haan warned that diesel prices remain high due to extremely tight supply, indicating that "some challenges" still lie ahead, even as oil prices were still range-bound on Monday after rallying last week.
GasBuddy's demand data shows U.S. retail gasoline demand falling last week by 2.5%.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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