AAA: Gas prices fall in southern Ohio

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The average price of gasoline across South Central Ohio is four cents cheaper this week at $3.054 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: South Central Ohio Average: $3.054

Average price during the week of January 18, 2022 $3.091

Average price during the week of January 25, 2021 $2.324

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

$3.171 Athens

$2.901 Chillicothe

$3.017 Columbiana

$3.183 East Liverpool

$3.180 Gallipolis

$2.879 Hillsboro

$3.176 Ironton

$3.085 Jackson

$3.042 Logan

$3.167 Marietta

$3.024 Portsmouth

$2.972 Steubenville

$2.956 Washington Court House

$3.009 Waverly

Trend Analysis:

Despite typical low seasonal demand for gasoline, pump prices are clawing their way higher. The national average for a gallon of gas is $3.33, two cents more than a week ago. The culprit is the rising price for oil, which is now around $85 per barrel, nearly $20 more than in November. Last week, both OPEC and U.S. energy officials said the COVID-19 omicron variant is no longer expected to slow the continued recovery of petroleum demand in 2022. Despite this, OPEC and its allies are maintaining their planned modest production increases and will not dramatically ramp up output. The result will be a continued tight supply of oil.

At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate decreased by 41 cents to settle at $85.14. Although crude prices ended the day down due to weather-related demand concerns, prices generally rose last week despite the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reporting that total domestic crude stocks increased by 500,000 barrels to 413.8 million barrels. The current crude stock level is approximately 15 percent lower than in mid-January 2021, contributing to pressure on domestic crude prices.

According to new data from the EIA, total domestic gasoline stocks rose by 5.9 million barrels to 246.6 million barrels last week. Meanwhile, gasoline demand rose slightly from 7.91 million barrels per day to 8.22 million barrels per day. The slight increase still puts gas demand in the average range for the winter driving season. Typically, pump prices drop due to low gas demand and a rise in supply, but a steady increase in the price of crude oil has prevented this from happening.

Today’s national average of $3.33 is five cents more than a month ago and 94 cents more than a year ago.

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

AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 72 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.

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