U.S. Energy Prices Remain Mixed, Reverse Moderately
Summary
- Gasoline prices turn modestly higher.
- But crude oil prices turned down.
- Natural gas prices also declined.
Retail gasoline prices increased last week to $3.71 per gallon (+16.9% y/y), 6 cents higher than the week before and the first weekly increase since mid-June. That mid-June peak price was $5.01.
By contrast, crude oil prices fell last week, with West Texas Intermediate declining to $83.20 per barrel (15.3% y/y) on average in the week ended September 23. During the prior week, prices had risen to $87.03 from $85.03 in the week ended September 9. These prices are down from a high of $120.46 per barrel in the second week of June. Yesterday, the price was $76.71 per barrel. The average price of Brent crude oil decreased to $88.54 per barrel (17.6% y/y) after rising to $91.41 in the previous week. The price peaked at $127.40 in mid-June. Yesterday, the price was $82.55 per barrel.
The price of natural gas also decreased last week, reaching $7.69/mmbtu (52.9% y/y) from $8.42/mmbtu in the previous week. Prices peaked at $9.56/mmbtu in the last week of August but remained up from a low of $3.56/mmbtu in the last week of December. Yesterday, the price was $6.75/mmbtu.
In the four weeks ended September 16, gasoline demand was down 7.7% from a year earlier, somewhat less weak than the 9.0% decline in the September 9 week, but markedly less than the 15.2% y/y growth at the end of last year. Demand for all petroleum products was down 6.7% y/y in the latest four-week period in contrast to the 14.4% growth at the end of 2021. Crude oil input to refineries increased 7.6% y/y, up from 6.2% last week and again the quickest growth since early April.
Gasoline inventories fell 3.2% y/y in the week of September 16, while crude oil inventories declined 17.0% y/y.
Measured in days' supply, gasoline inventories in the week ended September 16 rose to 25.1 days from 24.9 days in the prior week. The supply of crude oil was steady with the week before at 26.7 days and remained down from 41.8 days in early-March of last year.
These data are reported by the Energy Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy. The price data can be found in Haver's WEEKLY and DAILY databases. Greater detail on prices, as well as the demand, production and inventory data are in USENERGY.
Carol Stone, CBE
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Carol Stone, CBE came to Haver Analytics in 2003 following more than 35 years as a financial market economist at major Wall Street financial institutions, most especially Merrill Lynch and Nomura Securities. She has broad experience in analysis and forecasting of flow-of-funds accounts, the federal budget and Federal Reserve operations. At Nomura Securites, among other duties, she developed various indicator forecasting tools and edited a daily global publication produced in London and New York for readers in Tokyo. At Haver Analytics, Carol is a member of the Research Department, aiding database managers with research and documentation efforts, as well as posting commentary on select economic reports. In addition, she conducts Ways-of-the-World, a blog on economic issues for an Episcopal-Church-affiliated website, The Geranium Farm. During her career, Carol served as an officer of the Money Marketeers and the Downtown Economists Club. She has a PhD from NYU's Stern School of Business. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, and has a weekend home on Long Island.
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