Western Pennsylvania Pump Prices Drop as Regional Inventory Jumps
The average price of gasoline across Western Pennsylvania is six cents cheaper this week at $2.861 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.
Statewide, Pennsylvania motorists are paying a nickel less at the pump this week at an average of $2.82.
All Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states saw gas prices decline on the week. However, decreases have been moderate (an average of four-cents) in comparison to other regions with double-digit weekly changes.
Regional gas prices are likely to continue decreasing, considering gasoline inventory rose by nearly 2 million barrels on the week. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), this was the largest build of any region. Much of the increase can be attributed to imports, as regional refinery utilization saw a 2 percent drop this week.
This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average $2.861
Average price during the week of August 5, 2019 $2.924
Average price during the week of August 13, 2018 $3.113
The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:
$2.556 Altoona
$2.771 Beaver
$2.905 Bradford
$2.941 Brookville
$2.884 Butler
$2.926 Clarion
$2.678 Du Bois
$2.933 Erie
$2.859 Greensburg
$2.915 Indiana
$2.937 Jeannette
$2.905 Kittanning
$2.799 Latrobe
$2.763 Meadville
$2.925 Mercer
$2.798 New Castle
$2.843 New Kensington
$2.932 Pittsburgh
$2.976 Sharon
$2.803 Uniontown
$2.959 Warren
$2.942 Washington
On the National Front
Today’s national gas price average ($2.64) is seven cents cheaper on the week, 13-cents less than a month ago, and 21-cents cheaper than a year ago.
This week’s decline is largely due to an increase in domestic gasoline inventory, which outpaced a weekly increase in demand. According to the EIA’s latest data, stocks built by 4.4 million barrels. Contributing to the build was at least 1.2 million b/d of imports at U.S. ports. With the large bump, stocks now sit 235 million barrels – a U.S. stock level not seen since the end of March.
At the close of Friday’s formal trading session on the NYMEX, West Texas Intermediate increased by a $1.96 to settle at $54.50. Crude prices increased last week after reports emerged that OPEC is considering additional crude production cuts. In July, the cartel announced that it and its partners would extend the 1.2 million b/d crude production reduction agreement for an additional nine months. More details about the potential production cuts will likely be discussed at OPEC’s next meeting in December.
Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.
AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 79 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.