The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) has released its latest gasoline and diesel price forecasts for 2023 and 2024 in its February Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO).
The EIA now expects retail gasoline prices to average $3.39 per gallon in 2023 and $3.10 per gallon in 2024, a slight increase from projections made in the January STEO, which saw retail gasoline hit $3.32 a gallon this year and $3.09. per gallon in 2024.
In the latest STEO, on-highway diesel fuel is projected to average $4.23 per gallon in 2023 and $3.70 per gallon in 2024. The January STEO saw an average of 4.22 dollars per gallon of highway fuel this year and $3.69 per gallon in 2024.
According to the EIA’s latest gasoline and diesel update, which was released on February 6, the US regular gasoline price rose from $3.415 per gallon on January 23 to $3.489 per gallon on January 30. January, before dropping to $3.444 per gallon on February 6. The price of regular gasoline is the most expensive in California, at $4.414 a gallon, and the cheapest on the Gulf Coast, at $3.092 a gallon, as of Feb. 6, the update showed.
U.S. highway diesel prices also rose from $4.604 a gallon on Jan. 23 to $4.622 a gallon on Jan. 30, before falling to $4.539 a gallon on Feb. 6, according to the update. That fuel was also the most expensive in California, at $5.482 a gallon, and the cheapest on the Gulf Coast, at $4.249 a gallon, as of Feb. 6, according to the report.
AAA gas prices
According to the website AAA Gas Prices, as of February 9, the average price of regular gasoline in the US is $3.437 per gallon. Yesterday’s average price was $3.445 per gallon, last week’s average was $3.498 per gallon, last month’s average was $3.280 per gallon, and last year’s average was $3.469 per gallon gallon, show the AAA site.
The average price of diesel in the US is $4.593 per gallon, as of February 9, according to the site. Yesterday’s average was $4.604 per gallon, last week’s average was $4.675 per gallon, last month’s average was $4.653 per gallon, and last year’s average was $3.854 per gallon , highlights the site.
The highest average price on record for regular gasoline was seen on June 14, 2022, at $5.016 per gallon, and the highest average price on record for diesel was seen on June 19, 2022, at $5.816 per gallon gallon, notes the AAA site.
In a statement posted on the AAA site on Feb. 6, AAA spokesman Andrew Gross said, “Watch the price of oil … because oil currently makes up almost 60 percent of what we pay to the bomb”.
“Rising or falling oil prices can have a direct impact on motorists’ wallets,” Gross added in the statement.
GasBuddy
GasBuddy’s live average for US regular gasoline was $3.407 per gallon as of 7:25 a.m. EST on Feb. 9, which the organization noted was “steady” from yesterday’s average. The price was down from last week’s average, past last month’s average and below last year’s average, GasBuddy’s website noted.
In its 2023 Fuel Outlook released on December 28, 2022, GasBuddy projected the national average annual gas price in 2023 to drop to $3.49 per gallon.
“Continued improvement in refinery capacity will help ease gasoline and diesel prices, although high levels of uncertainty remain amid Russia’s ongoing war with Ukraine and ongoing economic concerns,” he said. GasBuddy said in a statement posted on its website at the time.
In the statement, the organization also noted that a national average of $4 is still possible before and during the summer driving season.
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