While the outlook could go either way, strong gasoline demand ahead of the normal seasonal increase, extensive refinery maintenance, and still tight crude oil supply, may be pointing to added price pressure in the months ahead.
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The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline rose last week for the twelfth time in thirteen weeks,
increasing by 2.6 cents per gallon as of March 10 to reach 171.2 cents per gallon, which, as noted above,
is 48.9 cents per gallon higher than a year ago. This price is only 0.1 cent lower per gallon than the
highest price in nominal dollars since EIA began recording this data in August 1990. While the outlook could go either way, strong gasoline demand ahead of the normal seasonal increase, extensive refinery maintenance, and still tight crude oil supply, may be pointing to added price pressure in the months ahead. | |
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Prices were up throughout the country, with the largest increase occurring in California, where prices
rose 7.2 cents to end at 208.4 cents per gallon, the highest price ever in our survey, which for California
goes back to May 2000. This is the second week in a row that California prices have been above $2 per gallon. Prices for all of the West Coast are on the brink of that $2 mark, hitting 199.3 cents per gallon on March 10, and prices in PADD 5 appear to be an important driver in the increase of national prices. Retail diesel fuel prices increased for the eighth straight week, rising 1.8 cents per gallon to a national average of 177.1 cents per gallon as of March 10. |  Click here to enlarge image |
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This is the highest diesel price since EIA began recording
this data in March 1994, and the fourth week in a row that diesel fuel has topped its previous record price. Retail diesel prices were up throughout most the country, with the largest price increase occurring on the West Coast, where prices rose 8.1 cents per gallon to end at 188.6 cents per gallon. Prices in New England rose again, by 4.7 cents to reach 200.1 cents per gallon, the highest price in the nation. The Gulf Coast was the only region that saw a price decrease, with prices falling by 0.3 cent to end at 169.7 cents per gallon. |