The snowy weather did not halt the decline in gas prices in the region.
Delaware saw its gas prices drop by five cents to an average of $1.74 a gallon during the past week, Wilmington-based AAA MId-Atlantic reported.
Nationally, gas prices have spent more than 30 consecutive days below $2 per gallon and could head lower still as reduced seasonal demand and falling crude oil costs combine to send pump prices to the lowest mark in six years.
The national average price of $1.80 per gallon is down by three cents on the week, 20 cents on the month and 25 cents on the year.
The benchmark West Texas Intermediate Crude closed out Friday’s formal trading session on the NYMEX up $1.43, settling at $33.62 per barrel.
One factor in the uptick is a record-breaking blizzard that brought a foot or more of snow to the region. Severe weather can make it difficult for refiners to produce gasoline and can create hurdles for getting the product to market.
Locally, the Delaware City Refinery saw an outage during blizzard conditions.
However, storms also keep drivers off of roads, which can limit demand.
“Gasoline prices tend to drop during January and February as demand shrinks to its lowest levels,” said Jana L. Tidwell, manager of public and government affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic. “Demand was even lower this past week as millions became stranded after the record-breaking snow storm that blanketed the Northeast.”
The Energy Information Administration’s latest report found that both crude oil and gasoline inventories have increased. On the East coast, gasoline inventories are up by 2.9 million barrels in comparison to last year, while oil inventories are more than 21 percent higher today than they were at this time last year.
For local gas prices, log on to the Fuel Price Finder (AAA.com/fuelfinder).
