Gasoline demand, and with it the prices at the pump, are likely to drop due to both COVID and the usual seasonal drop at the end of the vacation months. But the change over the past week has been minimal.

According to the weekly press release from Montrae Waiters the spokeswoman from AAA – The Auto Club Group, Georgia drivers are now paying an average of $2.96 per gallon.

“Georgia gas prices saw minimal or no change at the pumps across the state,” said Montrae Waiters, spokeswoman AAA-The Auto Club Group. “We anticipate demand will continue to decline in the weeks ahead as drivers traditionally take fewer road trips towards the end of summer and the rise of coronavirus infections.”

Prices in Cobb County

The price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Cobb County is $3.00 at the time of this writing, about four cents more expensive 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.

What are the national trends?

AAA’s weekly report stated the following about national gas and oil trends:

NATIONAL AVERAGE DECLINES ALONGSIDE GAS DEMAND

Since last Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has decreased by 2 cents to $3.16. In its latest weekly report, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that gas demand decreased from 9.43 million barrels a day to 9.33 million barrels a day last week. The decrease in demand, which helped total gasoline stocks increase by 700,000 barrels to 228.2 million barrels, contributed to the cheaper national average. If demand continues to soften and supply builds throughout this month, pump prices will likely continue to decline ahead of Labor Day weekend. 

OIL MARKET DYNAMICS

At the close of last Thursday’s formal trading session, WTI decreased by $1.77 to settle at $63.69. Crude prices have dropped this week due to market concerns that crude demand will decline due to surging coronavirus infection rates across the globe. Price decreases have occurred despite EIA’s latest report showing that total domestic crude stocks decreased by 3.3 million barrels to 435.5 million barrels last week.

How does AAA determine gas prices?

According to AAA:

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.