After several weeks of steady rise in the price of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline, the price only rose two cents this week, to $2.00  per gallon, according to a press release from AAA – The Auto Club Group.

According to AAA, “Monday’s state average is only 2 cents more than a week ago, 23 cents more than last month, and 59 cents less than this time last year.”

“Modest increase at the pump was a welcome relief for Georgia motorists hitting the road 4th of July weekend,” said Montrae Waiters, spokeswoman, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “Pump prices continue to trend lower than what consumers paid a year ago. Gasoline demand appears to be rebounding, but there is still concern regarding recent uptick in new COVID-19 cases, which could prevent gas prices from continuing to rebound.”

Cobb County gasoline prices

The average price in Cobb County is $1.967, about three cents less than the statewide average. 

It is always possible to find lower gas prices than the average by comparison shopping or using tools like http://gasbuddy.com.

National trends in gas prices

AAA wrote the following about current national trends in gasoline and oil prices:

Since last Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline is $2.18, which is 1 cent higher than a week ago. According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand took a slight step back to 8.56 million barrels a day from 8.61 million barrels a day last week. Alongside decreasing demand, total domestic gasoline supplies grew by 1.2 million barrels to 256.5 million barrels last week. The national average holding steady means that gasoline supply and demand are largely in sync across the country. 

At the close of last Wednesday’s formal trading session, WTI increased by 55 cents to settle at $39.82. Domestic crude prices increased after EIA’s weekly report revealed that total domestic crude inventories fell by 7.2 million barrels to 533.5 million barrels. Decreasing crude stocks could mean that crude production is meeting demand as it continues to recover amid new coronavirus outbreaks.

How does AAA determine gas prices?

AAA explains it’s methodology for collecting data on gasoline prices at the pump as follows:

AAA updates fuel price averages daily at www.GasPrices.AAA.com. Every day up to 130,000 stations are surveyed based on credit card swipes and direct feeds in cooperation with the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS) and Wright Express for unmatched statistical reliability. All average retail prices in this report are for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline.