Gas prices are four cents higher in Western Pennsylvania this week at $3.909 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report. 

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                          $3.909
Average price during the week of July 31, 2023                                                $3.863
Average price during the week of August 8, 2022                                             $4.435

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

$3.987      Altoona
$3.816      Beaver
$3.905      Bradford
$3.944      Brookville
$3.898      Butler
$3.939      Clarion
$3.977      DuBois
$3.972      Erie
$3.903      Greensburg
$3.891      Indiana
$3.911      Jeannette
$3.883      Kittanning
$3.920      Latrobe
$3.967      Meadville
$3.997      Mercer
$3.795      New Castle
$3.871      New Kensington
$4.001      Oil City
$3.852      Pittsburgh
$3.754      Sharon
$3.878      Uniontown
$3.999      Warren
$3.852      Washington

Trend Analysis: 

The national average for a gallon of gas is continuing to trend higher, rising seven cents over the last week to $3.82. Pump price increases are primarily due to the price of oil, which has been staying close to $80 per barrel. Last month’s extreme heat also played a role in the recent gas price spike as some refineries pulled back on production, but operations are now returning to normal. Today’s national average is 29 cents more than a month ago but 24 cents less than a year ago.

According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand decreased slightly from 8.94 to 8.84 million barrels per day last week. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks increased by 1.5 million barrels to 219.1 million barrels.

At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate decreased by $1.88 to settle at $79.49. Oil prices temporarily dropped after the U.S. credit rating declined, increasing market fears that oil demand could decline if the economy eases. Additionally, the EIA reported that total domestic, commercial crude inventories decreased by 17 million barrels to 439.8 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 69 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.