The average price of gasoline across South Central Ohio is four cents lower this week at $3.041 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: South Central Ohio Average: $3.041

Average price during the week of July 6, 2021 $3.082

Average price during the week of July 13, 2020 $2.183

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:

$3.155 Athens

$2.995 Chillicothe

$2.932 Columbiana

$2.945 East Liverpool

$3.099 Gallipolis

$2.903 Hillsboro

$3.093 Ironton

$3.048 Jackson

$3.109 Logan

$3.096 Marietta

$3.049 Portsmouth

$3.011 Steubenville

$3.019 Washington Court House

$3.128 Waverly

Trend Analysis:

At 10 million barrels per day, gasoline demand reached a new Energy Information Administration (EIA) record last week, and that number only partially reflects Independence Day holiday weekend travel. The nearly 1 million barrel per day jump in demand drove down gasoline supplies by 6.1 million barrels to 235,000 million barrels and consequently pushed the national average pump price up to $3.14.

The price of crude oil, which fluctuated last week following OPEC’s failure to reach an agreement on production increases, continues to be a dominant factor in determining how high prices will go this summer. Last week ended with higher crude prices than the start of the week, though still under $75 per barrel.

Peak summer driving season is in full swing as Americans hit the road to explore and gas prices are not backing down. Motorists are paying, on average, nearly a dollar more a gallon than last summer to fill up and close to 40 cents more than in 2019.

As pump prices continue to increase, AAA members can save at the pump by joining the Fuel Rewards at Shell program at AAA.com/Shell. Members save 30 cents per gallon on their first fill-up when they join between now and August 31, 2021. As part of the Fuel Rewards program, AAA Members earn Gold Status ongoing and save five cents per gallon every day on each individual gas purchase of up to 20 gallons from participating Shell stations with no minimum fill ups.

Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.

AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 73 local offices in Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia serving 2.7 million members. News releases are available at news.eastcentral.aaa.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.