From staff reports
The average price of gasoline throughout the tri-county area is above the western Pennsylvania average of $3.58, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.
Both Venango and Clarion counties are averaging $3.63 per gallon, and Forest County is at $3.66.
Elsewhere in the region, both Mercer County, at $3.61, and Crawford County, at $3.65, also are above the western Pennsylvania average.
The current statewide average price is $3.57, which is $1.13 more than a year ago.
The national average price is $3.42, which is the highest price since September 2014.
Trend analysis
According to data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 1.5 million barrels to 214.2 million barrels last week. However, gasoline demand rose from 9.32 million barrels per day to 9.5 million barrels per day.
At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate increased by $2.46 to settle at $81.27. Although crude prices gained for the day due to a weakening dollar, crude prices mostly declined last week after EIA reported total domestic crude supply increased by 3.3 million barrels to 434.1 million barrels last week.
However, according to EIA’s data, the current storage level is approximately 10.4% lower than the same time the previous year. A tighter oil supply has helped to keep crude prices above $80 per barrel.
Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.
