The nation’s average price of gasoline has remained unchanged from a week ago, holding at $3.50 per gallon, according to GasBuddy. The national average diesel price fell 1.3 cents in the last week and stands at $3.79 per gallon.
GasBuddy’s Patrick De Haan says, “After declining going into July 4, average gasoline prices have struggled to find much momentum in either direction as the price of crude oil has continued to bounce around.” U.S. retail gasoline demand saw an 8.6 percent drop last week as the July 4 holiday closed and motorists returned from their holiday plans. However, De Haan says there is a risk of hurricane season and potential disruptions.
Colorado State University recently released its third forecast for the 2023 hurricane season, showing a sharp uptick in the number of expected major hurricanes. Oil markets have seen a rally over the last week after Saudi Arabia extended its 1-million-barrel-per-day production cut to August, and Russia joined in by slowing oil exports.