Gasoline Prices

[Frogdog1]

Has anyone seen gasoline prices go down in their area since January?

I have, but only a tiny bit. Yesterday, I paid $3.42 for Top Tier premium which is at my normal place to fill up my personal cars.

I am a little disappointed in this. I remember when I paid $1.87 for regular beginning shortly after 2016 rolled around when drilling took a leap.

I just checked the "Baker Hughes" U.S. rig count (actively drilling rigs) and it is only 539 rigs in the upper 48 as of today. That has been the most used indicator of drilling activity taking place in the U.S. or not taking place. For reference, I was over the operations of a large oil and gas drilling contractor at a young age, in the early 1980's when the rig count briefly hit 4,400 actively drilling rigs. I had a feeling, based on gasoline prices, that "Drill Baby Drill" wasn't taking place and it isn't. Yes, active rigs drilling at one time was in the thousands in the upper 48.

So, one question is why isn't drilling going on (and why are prices not down-er)? My family, one way or another, since I was born has been fed by the upstream oil and gas industry. Simply put, it is a number of things like, supply and demand, availability of the right quality of crude for American refining, and countless other things. My feelings are that demand is up, as it usually is this time of year, and summer gas costs more than winter gas. From there, it gets very complicated.

Main question: have your gasoline prices gone down and what are you paying at the pump? Keep politics out of this, please, because that isn't affecting prices right now.

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[pecco1988]

its been pretty consistent here in north jersey. im paying 3.73$ a gallon at gulf for 93 or i can pay 3.99 at sunoco for 94.

 

[smurfslayer]

if we try hard enough we can forget
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/...436/biden-term-highest-gas-prices-us-history/

yeah, there could be more done, and we’re not setting aside enough for the US market but all in all, it’s better now than it was.

 

[Hadelson]

Just returned from Pennsylvania Wisconsin Trip. Prices pretty consistent. Agree not seeing big drop in prices. Took Wifes Toyota and averaged 31.5MPG on regular.

 

[Q6543]

Inflation adjusted gasoline prices are at historical lows… I always stay prepared for $7-8 per gallon as that would be far more normal.

 

[LouG]

We've just heard that our beloved Govt is removing tax on gas. Between 70c and $1.20 litre depending what you call a tax.
But ( there's always a but) the buggers are imposing a mileage tax called Road User Charges.
It's been used on heavy vehicles, diesels etc for years. Now it's our turn.
$76 per 1000kms is the starting point for light vehicles.
Basterds.

 

[smurfslayer]

Inflation adjusted gasoline prices are at historical lows… I always stay prepared for $7-8 per gallon as that would be far more normal.

As soon as a fuel discussion imports the 2 words “inflation adjusted” then it’s all about the numbers. The thing about the numbers is, if you torture them enough eventually they will tell you what you want to hear.

Inflation adjusted is the plea of government talking heads when the price outrageously increases. This crosses the political spectrum, and you can draw your own conclusions. There are still some sources that proclaim ’73 and ’81 were worse. ’73 I lived through, along with rationing, alternating days based on your plate number, and so on.

A lot of the market is driven by speculation. if you live on the (l)east coast of the US and have oil fuel heat, you know this first hand. This puts you at the mercy of the oil speculators market. That works by basically starting a panic any time a gnat falls off a camel anywhere in the middle east.
When that doesn’t happen for 18 months or so, OPEC grumbles about needing to reduce production. Sometimes the US knuckles under and forces our consumers to pay the premium. Other times we remind OPEC countries what a nice country they have and it would be a shame if something bad happened to it.

Fuel prices are higher than they should be in the US and we are well past switching blends. I vacationed in South Padre Island last month and gas was a full $0.40 / gallon cheaper than surrounding south Texas areas and it certainly wasn’t that low for a lack of demand, there were lines to get gas everywhere. There’s no rhyme or reason why SPI can be so cheap under heavier demand than the surrounding areas.

I see a lot of churn in the per gallon price too. from about $2.40 / gallon to $2.95 / gallon from week to week. And it’s not 5 or 10 cent per gallon swings, it’s down one week, then up 30 cents the next.

As for 7-8 bucks per gallon being ‘more normal’, that’s not sustainable in a country our size. It would increase the cost of every good and commodity by significant mounts and salaries would not increase to match it for years on.

That’s not a normal I want any part of.

 

[Germansheperd]

A dollar in 2016 is now 1.35
Reg gas is approximately $2.60 around me currently today.
Using just the inflation adjustment that makes gas approximately $1.74/gal. That makes gas cheaper today vs 2016.

 

[4ksk416]

I paid 5.07 for top tier 91 recently in CA. Came down .30

I anticipate next jump will land around 8.00 here. Either way I just fill it up.

 

[135Hoser]

These gas price threads always make me laugh.

 

[erocker]

Hasn't really changed here the past 5 years. Everything else seems to be up.

 

[GrabThatBlue]

I pay 2.20 Euro's a Liter.

That's 9.69 USD a gallon.

Ans you guys in the US earn twice as much a month average than us lol.

 

[Skye]

Prices in my area have been stable, and, lower than last year. Shell Premium is $3.49 a gallon.

- The overall outlook for global growth is lower, with demand projections being reduced accordingly. The global requirement for oil is stable or lower than previous

- Russia needs capital, and has been cranking up output accordingly, primarily to the benefit of India and China. To maintain market share, OPEC has increased its production. Oil is plentiful

- Within the last quarter, BP has announced the discovery of two large fields, one in the Gulf of Mexico, one off the coast of Brazil. Just the idea that even more oil has been added to proven global reserves puts pressure on existing prices and the need to go drilling elsewhere

- In many parts of the Continental US, the quick or easy kills have been exploited. In some cases, production has peaked or declining. Securing land rights, exploration, drilling and delivery is capital-intensive. With so much oil already available, it's not cost-effective to go drilling in the US right now. Or, it might be cost-effective to explore and secure, then sit on the asset

- For the companies that can, it doesn't make financial sense to bring even more oil onto the market, reducing prices further still. Oil producers know the per-barrel cost at each of their sites. They're not going to squeeze profit margins on those if they don't have to

Edit,

I went to my household financial spreadsheet and studied what I paid each year for gasoline. For the last three years, my per-month costs have been stable or decreasing, while the number of vehicles and miles/kms driven has remained the same.

My home is a combination of natural gas and electric. The local provider produces with gas and solar. Monthly home utility bills have been stable to slightly declining the last three years.

We've been exploring and drilling in the Continental US for over 100 years. We have a general idea where everything is and amounts of potential reserves of those natural resources. For what's left, it comes down to per-asset production costs and what can be made if sold in the open market.

 

[Alan Applegate]

This issue brings up an evidential question: Why is California closing refineries?

 

[Bikeman315]

This issue brings up an evidential question: Why is California closing refineries?

1. You need to rephrase you question. Why are Phillips 66 and Valero each closing a single refinery.
2. There is no singular reason for why these refineries are closing. Therefore there is no singular answer as to why.

It is a very complex issue. Hopefully these article will explain some of the issues.

https://energyathaas.wordpress.com/2025/08/18/californias-refinery-closure-drama/

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