Austin gas prices have fallen 2.3-cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.18/g Monday, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 830 stations. Gas prices in Austin are 5.4-cents per gallon lower than a month ago and stand 7.3-cents per gallon higher than a year ago.
According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Austin is priced at $1.97/g while the most expensive is $2.78/g.
The national average price of gasoline has fallen 3.0-cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $2.57/g today.
“OPEC’s surprising oil production cut announced last week may have a negative impact on gas prices in the days ahead, but for now, a majority of states saw gas prices drift lower in the last week as government data showed a large rise in gasoline inventories, perhaps offsetting OPEC’s production cut,” said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. “While OPEC’s announcement was certainly not expected, it lasts just three months until March, which is barely enough time to even see if there’s going to be a high level of compliance or not, effectively making the cut indiscernible to markets. It was the highest profile move OPEC could make that the markets could still entirely dismiss. Refineries, meanwhile, have ramped up output as the end of the year looms, which could also offset any rise in oil prices. Refiners draw down oil inventories ahead of the turn of the year to avoid taxes, which could help lead to increases in refined product inventories and drive prices down. There’s a lot on the table, and that’s without even mentioning the still looming potential trade deal between the U.S. and China.”
