Although the price of reformulated gasoline in the United States has dropped below three dollars a gallon, driven by falling international oil prices, they remain high, as they accumulate a 28.72 percent increase so far this year.
As of this Aug 16, a gallon has been selling for $ 2,899 and is down $ 1.41 or 32.81% from its latest June 5 high at $ 4,314. Meanwhile, in the week ending 12 August, the reduction was 4.83%.
Since last March, gasoline prices in the United States have risen by more than four dollars a gallon, a level seen for the first time since 2008, according to data from GasBuddy, the American fuel information platform.
Ana Azuara, an analyst at Banco Base, explained that despite the fact that gasoline prices in the United States have fallen over the past two and a half months, they remain high, so she estimated that its price will continue to be volatile.
The decline in the price of automotive fuel coincides with the decline in international crude oil prices.
The price of the American West Texas Intermediate (WTI) barrel fell by 30.05% from the high of this 2022, going from $ 123.70 on March 8 to $ 86.53 at the close of Tuesday, August 16.
For its part, the price of European North Sea Brent has dropped by 27.85% since March 8, when it hit a record high of $ 127.98 a barrel and closed at $ 92.34 on Tuesday.
Although so far this year, prices continue to rise. In the case of US oil, it trades 15.05% higher than its early January price, and Brent is 18.72% more expensive.
Factors that have pushed international oil prices down and could put them under the most pressure are a slowdown in economic growth in China, the economy of the United States and Europe in recession, as well as a significant increase in oil supply. . globally, ”said Ana Azuara.
He added that there are more factors that would drive up the international price of crude oil because it also depends on the evolution of the energy crisis in Europe, as well as on the weather conditions for this winter. Therefore, you have estimated that WTI could once again exceed $ 100 and Brent around $ 105 a barrel.
For his part, Patrick De Haan, head of oil analysis at GasBuddy, felt that gasoline prices this year have behaved in a way never seen before, with operations being so volatile with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. which has caused countless imbalances in the world economy and this has been exacerbated by Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“While the recent drop in gas prices has been very welcome, the problems that have caused the price hike have not been fully resolved and could still push prices back up if something happens. unexpected, “said the specialist.
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