Gas prices averaged $2.72 in US in 2018
Regular gas prices averaged $2.72 per gallon (gal) in 2018 in the United States, which is 30 cents/gal higher than in 2017 and 57 cents/gal higher than in 2016.
However, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), prices began declining in and finished the year lower than they began for the first time since 2015.
Rising crude oil prices and high levels of gasoline demand contributed to rising gas prices from January through May but remained relatively stable from June through October. In October, falling oil prices, high gasoline inventories, and flattening U.S. gasoline demand helped bring the U.S. average price down by nearly $0.50 per gallon between October and December. The national price for gas dropped for 12 weeks in a row at the end of 2018. It was the longest consecutive weekly drop since the decline from October 2014 through January 2015. The extent of the decline varied greatly within the regions.
EIA collects data from 10 cities, nine states, five regions, and the United States as a whole. In the East Coast region, which includes Boston, New York City, and Miami, the average price moved within a range of $2.25/gal to $2.91/gal during the year. In the Midwest, prices in Chicago were higher than prices in Cleveland and the Midwest region. Cleveland’s gas prices were the second lowest in the country for 25 weeks and the lowest for two weeks. In the Gulf Coast, gas prices in Houston were the lowest of the 10 cities for which EIA collected data for 50 weeks in 2018. In the Rocky Mountains, average gasoline prices for the entire Rocky Mountains region moved within a range of $2.42/gal to $3.01/gal during the year. In the West Coast, which includes Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle, gas prices tend to be higher than in other parts of the country because of strict fuel specifications in California, the region’s relative isolation from other markets, and higher state and local taxes.
Of the 10 cities for which EIA collects data, gas prices in San Francisco were the highest for all but the first 14 weeks of 2018, when prices were highest in Los Angeles. In San Francisco, gas prices peaked in October at $3.76/gal. In five of the 10 cities for which EIA collects weekly price data, gas prices exceeded $3.00/gal at least once in 2018.
