After five straight weeks of increases, the Tennessee gas price average continues to climb. The Tennessee Gas Price average is now $2.68 which is 40 cents more than one month ago and 63 cents more than one year ago.
The National Average is $2.86, which is about 18 cents higher than the state average. The average price in Coffee County is $2.64, which is 4 cents below the state average and 22 cents below the national average.
“Over the last five weeks, Tennessee gas prices have risen a total of 45 cents, on average,” said Megan Cooper, spokesperson, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “With increased demand and tighter gasoline supplies, we are looking at more expensive pump prices with little relief in the weeks ahead.”
Quick Facts
· 81% of Tennessee gas stations have prices below $2.75
· The lowest 10% of pump prices are $2.48 for regular unleaded
· The highest 10% of pump prices are $2.92 for regular unleaded
National Gas Prices
Following last month’s winter storm in Texas, the national gas price average has jumped nearly 40 cents to $2.86. Prices will continue to increase this week, especially following the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) latest weekly reports showing a second week of major decline in gasoline stocks and a substantial increase in U.S. demand.
For the week ending March 5, the EIA reports gas stocks decreased by nearly 12 million bbl to 231.6 million bbl, as demand increased from 8.15 million b/d to 8.73 million b/d last week. That demand measurement is the highest since the end of November 2020, which coincidentally was the same month we saw stocks as low as they are today.
Amid tightening supply and increasing demand, the good news is that the price of crude, which accounts for more than half of the price at the pump, showed signs of stability on the week fluctuating between $64–$66/bbl. If crude sustains at this level, especially as refinery utilization increases, the jumps at the pump are likely not to be so substantial by April.
On the week, the national average is nine cents more expensive with 20 states seeing double-digit jumps.
National Oil Market Dynamics
At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, WTI decreased by 41 cents to settle at $65.61. Although the price of crude decreased on Friday, due to a stronger dollar, crude prices rose earlier in the week to $66/bbl with market optimism about crude demand recovery. Crude prices increased despite EIA’s latest weekly report revealing that crude inventories increased by 13.8 million bbl to 498.4 million bbl. For this week, crude prices are likely to continue moving higher if optimism grows.
