Photo: Maskot
Drivers, you’re in for a treat on this summer’s road trip.
Gas prices have taken another dip over the past week. GasBuddy reports the cost of a gallon went down another 3.8 cents this past week.
“It’s been a motorists’ dream so far,” declared GasBuddy analyst Patrick DeHaan, “with overall gas prices at some of their lowest summer levels, really, since the pandemic.”
With an average now at $2.70 a gallon, Texas has some of the lowest gas prices in the country.
DeHaan warns that OPEC cuts in oil production could raise costs, but he says the overall climate is keeping them low, including a production binge by OPEC up to this point, pouring oceans of oil into the market, which has played a major part in the current pricing landscape.
Elevated fighting in the war between Russia and Ukraine did bring a brief jump in international oil prices, but DeHaan says that situation has already been priced in, and the only impact could come from a resolution to the conflict.
“A lot of these headlines can influence gasoline prices,” he said. “If there were a ceasefire or a deal between Russia and Ukraine, that could lower oil prices further on the prospect that it might allow for more oil to flow back to the market. But other headlines, such as the trade wars that we’ve been seeing, that is more of a challenge impacting oil.”
Talk of tariffs, corporate layoffs and possible weakness in the economy are also keeping prices low as rattled consumers scale back their travel plans, reducing demand for gasoline. “Americans are feeling a bit nauseous,” DeHaan explained. “GasBuddy’s summer travel survey found a slight reduction in Americans traveling this summer. It was 76 percent last year. This year it’s 69 percent.”
Drivers did hit the roads with enthusiasm with strong turnout leading up to the Memorial Day weekend, but DeHaan says that brief spike in demand is unlikely to affect prices with production levels as high as they have been.
“It’s a pretty decent summer for motorists that are a little more confident about the direction of the economy,” he said. “Not a bad time, amidst a little bit of economic uncertainty.”