Susquehanna Valley drivers are paying six cents less per gallon of gasoline this week as prices fell to $3.429 per gallon in the region. Pennsylvania ranks 24th in the country for the state average price of gasoline, $3.490. The lowest price today is Wyoming at $3.334 and the high is Hawaii at $4.366.
Today's national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is $3.52. This price is a penny less expensive than one week ago, but it is 16 cents less than one month ago and 34 cents less than one year ago. In 2011, the national average for regular unleaded gasoline peaked at $3.98 on May 5. In 2012, the price peaked at $3.94 on April 5 and 6.
While motorists in every state but three (Utah, Idaho and Wyoming) are paying less at the pump than one month ago, those in some Midwestern states have seen prices climb sharply in the last week following supply concerns from heavy rains in the region. Prices in 43 states and Washington, D.C., are lower than one week ago, compared to four Great Lakes states, which have seen the average price increase more than a dime per gallon (Illinois, 10 cents; Michigan, 24 cents; Ohio, 28 cents; and Indiana, 28 cents).
The recent storms and resulting power outages provided the catalyst for higher retail prices in the Midwest; however, analysts had warned that the region was susceptible to price increases as regional refineries had yet to undergo maintenance and make the transition to summer-blend gasoline production. Gas stations in much of the country must make this retail switch by June 1; however, refineries shift to making summer blend in March and April to meet a May 1 production deadline. During this switch, regional production is reduced and supplied markets are more susceptible to unexpected disruptions, as was the case during the recent storms in the Midwest.
The primary factors driving retail gas prices lower in recent weeks have been low demand, continued disappointing economic news and lower crude oil prices. At the close of Monday's formal trading on the NYMEX, WTI settled up 80 cents at $88.81 per barrel.
(AAA East Central, part of the AAA family, serves members in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, New York and Kentucky. Fuel Gauge is published each week in The News-Item.)
This week's Susquehanna Valley average price (as of Tuesday morning): $3.429
Average price during the week of April 16, 2013: $3.486
The following is a list of the average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:
Lewisburg - $3.342
Mifflinburg - $3.399
Milton - $3.359
Selinsgrove - $3.487
Shamokin - $3.486
Sunbury - $3.503