Now that tropical storm Ian has become Hurricane Ian, and is expected to intensify and slam Florida in the Gulf of Mexico, gasoline prices are almost certain to rise, and national averages are beginning to move upward.
But so far, the trend in Georgia is a continuing drop, with the price of a gallon of unleaded seven cents less than last week on 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 $3.11 per gallon for regular unleaded.
“The national gas price average has started to tick upward,” said Montrae Waiters, AAA-The Auto Club Group spokeswoman. “One factor is the threat of a hurricane in the Gulf. This could potentially shut down oil refineries production which could lead to higher pump prices. So far Georgia gas price average has not been impacted by the threat of a major storm.”
Prices in Cobb County
The price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Cobb County is $3.256 at the time of this writing, about 15 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 increased by 4 cents to $3.71 (subject to change overnight). After declining for 98 consecutive days, the national average reversed course as fluctuating oil prices and tight supply due to planned and unplanned maintenance work at refineries on the West Coast and Midwest contribute to rising pump prices. According to data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand decreased from 8.49 million barrels a day to 8.32 million barrels a day last week.
Moreover, according to the EIA, total domestic gasoline stocks increased by 1.6 million barrels to 214.6 million barrels. Although gasoline demand has decreased, tight supply, threat of a major storm, and fluctuating oil prices have increased the national average. However, if gas demand remains low and continues to drop, pump price increases will likely be minimized as supply increases.
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.
