US Holiday Travelers Set to Save Big on Gasoline

The U.S. average price for a gallon of regular gasoline on Tuesday was $2.008, about a penny a gallon more than Monday’s average of $1.998. On the same date in 2008, a gallon of regular gasoline cost just $1.637, on its way to a low of $1.592 in the immediate aftermath of the housing market collapse and the financial crisis.

Holiday travelers will pay the lowest prices for gasoline since 2008, and according to GasBuddy, will save about $1.6 billion on gasoline in their travels. GasBuddy’s senior petroleum analyst Patrick DeHaan said:

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas … in 2008! The extra savings and cheer will certainly spread as we close out the year. There has not been a better time in years for motorists to extend their trips and travel farther, as sub-$2 per gallon gas can be found at almost 70% of stations in the country.

The five states posting the lowest gasoline prices Tuesday morning were Oklahoma ($1.747), Missouri ($1.754), South Carolina ($1.770), Kansas ($1.771) and Arkansas ($1.775). In all, 30 states now average less than $2 a gallon for regular gasoline, and no state reports an average price higher than $2.75 a gallon.
[nativounit]
The five states reporting the highest gasoline prices are California ($2.742), Hawaii ($2.724), Nevada ($2.497), Washington ($2.434) and Alaska ($2.351). The city reporting the highest price for a gallon of gasoline was Los Angeles ($2.897). Of the 13 cities with the highest prices for gasoline, all are in California, and 16 of the top 20 are in the Golden State.

The most common price in the United States on Tuesday was $1.999, and the median price was $1.939. The lowest-priced 5% of U.S. gas stations are selling regular gasoline for $1.640 a gallon, and the highest-priced 5% were selling a gallon for $2.903. That price range is nearly a penny wider than a week ago and about 20 cents narrower than it was a year ago.

Benchmark West Texas Intermediate for February delivery traded down about 0.5% Tuesday morning, at $36.04, and Brent for February delivery traded down about 0.2% to $36.27. Even looking at March delivery for Brent, the spread is less than $1 a barrel, the smallest difference in price between the two grades in years.