Georgia gasoline price declined slightly over the past week over the past week, but not by much, registering only a one cent decline, compared with a three-cent average drop nationally. Cobb County prices remain elevated over the statewide average.

According to the weekly press release from Montrae Waiters the spokeswoman for AAA – The Auto Club Group, Georgia drivers are now paying an average of $4.47 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline.

“Georgia statewide pump price averages have managed to hold steady for the past few days,” said Waiters. “Unfortunately, we can’t predict if gas prices will decline this week, but should be prepared to deal with price fluctuations at the pump for the rest of the summer.”

Prices in Cobb County

The price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Cobb County is $4.52 at the time of this writing, about five 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:

Since last Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has decreased by 3 cents to $4.98 (subject to change overnight). According to information from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total domestic gasoline stocks fell by 700,000 barrels to 217.5 million barrels last week. Meanwhile, gasoline demand declined slightly from 9.2 million barrels a day to 9.09 million barrels a day. The slight drop in gas demand has helped to limit pump price increases. However, as crude oil prices remain volatile, the price per gallon for gasoline will likely remain elevated.

At the close of last Wednesday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) decreased by $3.62 to settle at $115.31. Slower than expected economic growth could cause crude demand to decline, leading prices to follow suit.

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.