Gasoline prices in Georgia have decreased an average of five cents per gallon, and AAA believes lower demand has driven that drop.

According to AAA’s weekly report, gasoline prices in Georgia were an average of $3.34 per gallon for regular unleaded as of this morning.

“The drop in gas prices over the weekend was a welcome relief to Georgians,” said Montrae Waiters, AAA-The Auto Club Group spokeswoman. “Crude oil prices, which play a key role in determining what consumers pay at the pump continue to fluctuate, and demand is down, which assists in lowering prices at the pumps. Unfortunately, we cannot predict if gas prices will rise again this week.”

What will you learn by reading below?

1. How do prices in Cobb County compare to the rest of the state
2. What are the national trends in gasoline prices?
3. How does AAA arrive at its price estimates?

Gasoline prices in Cobb County

The price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Cobb County is $3.428, about 9 cents more 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 2 cents to $3.50 (subject to change overnight). The likely cause is the terrible demand number for gasoline, as folks may be curtailing driving amid sizzling summer temperatures.

According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand plummeted from 9.39 million barrels a day to 8.78 last week. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks fell from 231.7 to 229.7 million barrels.  Gasoline production took a slight ding, likely from Hurricane Beryl, dropping from an average of 10.3 million barrels daily to 9.5. Low gasoline demand and wobbly oil costs may lead to slowly lowering pump prices.

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.”