AAA: Gas Prices Continue to Fall in Advance of the Holidays

Gas prices are seven cents cheaper in Western Pennsylvania this week at $3.795 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                          $3.795
Average price during the week of December 12, 2022                                      $3.867
Average price during the week of December 20, 2021                                      $3.548

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$3.795      Altoona
$3.893      Beaver
$3.895      Bradford
$3.462      Brookville
$3.841      Butler
$3.723      Clarion
$3.591      DuBois
$3.832      Erie
$3.856      Greensburg
$3.778      Indiana
$3.794      Jeannette
$3.804      Kittanning
$3.952      Latrobe
$3.879      Meadville
$3.870      Mercer
$3.693      New Castle
$3.841      New Kensington
$3.851      Oil City
$3.780      Pittsburgh
$3.785      Sharon
$3.841      Uniontown
$3.899      Warren
$3.735      Washington

Trend Analysis: 

Gas prices continue their downward trend as the national average slid 12 cents over the last week to $3.14. This is 54 cents less than a month ago and 16 cents less than a year ago. There are now 20 states with averages below $3 per gallon.

According to data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand decreased slightly from 8.36 to 8.26 million barrels per day last week. This coincides with the arrival of the winter driving season, when fewer people hit the roads due to shorter days and the potential for more treacherous driving conditions. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks rose significantly by 4.5 million barrels to 223.6 million barrels. Increasing supply and lower gasoline demand have helped push pump prices lower.

The cost of oil, gasoline’s main ingredient, has been hovering in the low-to-mid $70s per barrel, $50 less than the peak last spring. At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate decreased by $1.82 to settle at $74.29. Crude prices decreased at the end of last week due to a weaker dollar and ongoing market concerns that a recession next year could push oil demand and prices lower. Additionally, the EIA reported that total domestic commercial crude stocks expanded substantially by 10.2 million barrels to 424.1 million barrels.

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.