Gas prices are a penny cheaper in Western Pennsylvania this week at $3.764 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.
This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average $3.764
Average price during the week of June 24, 2024 $3.778
Average price during the week of July 3, 2023 $3.637
The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:
$3.638 Altoona
$3.864 Beaver
$3.894 Bradford
$3.598 Brookville
$3.709 Butler
$3.686 Clarion
$3.677 DuBois
$3.744 Erie
$3.689 Greensburg
$3.672 Indiana
$3.803 Jeannette
$3.845 Kittanning
$3.858 Latrobe
$3.758 Meadville
$3.926 Mercer
$3.723 New Castle
$3.645 New Kensington
**$3.868 Oil City
$3.765 Pittsburgh**
$3.697 Sharon
$3.842 Uniontown
$3.899 Warren
$3.765 Washington
Trend Analysis:
After remaining steady for three weeks, the national average increased a nickel over the past week to $3.49. The move came as the cost of oil crossed the $80 per barrel mark, putting upward pressure on pump prices. Because oil costs account for about 54% of the cost of a gallon of gas, more expensive oil usually leads to more expensive gas.
Summer gasoline demand has been lower than last year, but with a record 60 million travelers forecast to hit the road for the July 4th holiday, demand may increase over the next ten days. Today’s national average is five cents less than a month ago and four cents less than a year ago.
According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand fell from 9.38 million barrels per day to 8.96 million last week. This demand level is about 240,000 barrels per day below the same week of last year. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks rose from 231.2 to 233.9 million barrels.
At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate rose seven cents to $80.90 a barrel, up from $78.50 two weeks earlier. The EIA reports that crude oil inventories increased by 3.6 million barrels from the previous week. At 460.7 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are just 2% below the five-year average for this time of year.
Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at gasprices.aaa.com.
AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 70 local offices in Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia serving 2.7 million members. News releases are available at news.eastcentral.aaa.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
