Gasoline demand sees biggest fall in decade: API

marketwatch, yahoo ^

[RockinRight]

My job requires lots of driving, so unfortunately I've only been able to cut about 5% - 10% off my driving.

[xrp]

Use less. Your costs and the prices will both go down.

[Chuck54]

Gas in Atlanta is $2.99 for 87 octane,

Gas in very northwest Georgia (Dade Co.) is only $2.61. May be up today, but this was yesterday.

[eraser2005]

HOLD ON! :)

According to Bloomberg yesterday, the demand numbers are including an export of 1mbpd that is probably not being sold abroad. This would mean a boost of 1mpbd to the demand numbers. Net would mean that demand is up, but at a historically weak increase.

Personally, I think the truth is somewhere in between. I doubt that they're still shipping 1 mbpd out of the country, but I do think there's some weakness in demand. Combine those two and you would have a recipe for increase in stockpiles, which is what we're seeing.

[r9etb]

Note the negative spin on the drop in refinery output as being the "lowest since 1943 and the drop in demand for gasoline to be the "largest in 10 years". It was not mentioned until the very end of the article that the drastic drop in production was totally caused by the hurricane which caused shortages which drove up prices which THEN caused the drop in demand!

You misread. It wasn't refinery output, it was domestic crude oil production that dropped.

[HostileTerritory]

Hey, it's not about me. I'm lucky enough to take mass transit to work each day, and am paying no more than I did in June.

The U.S. and world have reached a level of supply and demand for crude oil that dictates prices about $2.00 a gallon. China and India are only going to increase demand over time as their populations join the modern world. Individual conservation in the U.S. could have a short-term effect, but only if it becomes permanent, which is both unlikely to happen and unlikely to not piss off people in its own right if it requires big lifestyle changes.

[trubluolyguy]

Gas prices in KC, MO area are already under $2.28/gallon

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Out here in small town Washington St. I am still looking at $2.70 + per gallon on average. If I see $2.25 per gallong or less again ever, I will be pleasantly surprised.

[Beagle8U]

I don't know you, or where you live, but I'd guess its somewhere that you don't need a 4x4 to get to work in the winter?
Some people HAVE to drive a 4x4 to get out in winter!
My road may not get plowed for several days after a snow storm, and if you don't get to work you get fired.

You may well see many driving that 4x4 all summer when they wouldn't need it, but when it costs 30K+ to buy a "must have", not everyone can afford a toy car to drive in summer.
I'm sure you drive what works for you, I'll drive what works for me, and I thank You in advance for understanding that your personal choice doesn't fit everyone.

[CharlesWayneCT]

So it seems that the hurricanes knocked about 1 million barrels a day out of our production, and caused gas price and oil heating spikes that the democrats all call "disastrous" and a sign of the "utter failure" of the administration.

But when we talk about ANWR, the democrats say that an extra million barrels a day of output would be meaningless.

We need to hammer this home the next few months, until we get ANWR opened.

[igor1]

"I honestly don't see gas going below 2.00 a gallon ever again."

You are an optimist!

[Trust but Verify]

Good for you! Saving money and having a healthy lifestyle is a win-win.

[Redcloak]

Don't say that around Willie Green or A.Pole!

[CharlesWayneCT]

I dropped 5 mph off my driving, stopped accelerating/decelerating so much, and re-inflated my tires to close to their rated max (higher than recommended -- recommended is for driver comfort).

According to my readout, I've increased my gas mileage about 5mpg, although it's hard to say for sure because each tank is different as I drive differently. I had two tanks just over 50mpg when I was taking some road trips.

Now I'm doing only short trips, and I'm at about 47mpg. When I didn't care, that was about 42mpg (but I got to work at least 30 seconds quicker on average...)

We have some gas stations below $2.50 now. I think I heard of a $2.43. (northern virginia)

[Eagles Talon IV]

Refinery output was down 75% in the Gulf refineries due to Katrina and Rita and so the stocks of gasoline and fuel oil dropped.

Crude oil is not the problem as the huge increase in supply in that report shows. There is NO shortage of crude, it is a shortage of refinery capacity that has caused the huge increase in gasoline and heating oil prices which (gasoline) are now rapidly declining.

[CharlesWayneCT]

Except that demand peaks near the end of the summer, and drops in the fall/winter (for gas).

Also I think they have waived some rules about different mixes of gas, and that should keep prices a little lower until they reinstate the rules.

Did the energy bill fix this, or not?

[JackDanielsOldNo7]

i probably should have said in fayetteville is 2.80. raleigh it is 2.55.

[norraad]

Woops, try a few panic stops with those hard overinflated tires.

You may find it cheaper to burn a drop or two more gas for the safety & comfort soft grippy tires provide.

[leftcoaster]

U.S. gasoline deliveries, a key measure of demand, fell almost 4% in September to log their biggest year-to-year decline in more than a decade, the American Petroleum Institute reported Wednesday morning.

Forgive me, but I can not stand it when the LSM/MSM screws up economic reporting.

High prices do not reduce demand, they reduce CONSUMPTION. Low prices do not increase demand, they increase CONSUMPTION.

Demand is the entire range of consumption over various price levels, for a given, usually short-term, period of time.

Prices can affect long-term demand, if people's expectations of further high prices lead them to buy smaller cars or add additional insulation to their homes or change their habits to car pool more often.

Demand is a predicted behaviour, and this is exactly what could be happening under the same demand conditions we had last summer.

[Vaquero]

"Tell it to Schmucky Schumer " Hey have some respect....his name is Senator Putzhead.(LOL)

[eraser2005]

In fairness, the Pilot does pretty well on the highway, about 22 mpg. Not bad for an SUV, but not great. The Highlander gets a few more mpg, and you can get a wagon with the same interior space that will get closer to 30. The supply/demand equation will work when we see serious shifts in purchasing habits, which we are only now beginning to see (full size SUV sales plummeting). The problem is vehicle purchases have long term impacts, as the average vehicle stays on the road 12 years. So while supply can be significantly affected in a short period, demand takes years to make large adjustments. So coming off a period of low prices, which encourage neglect of fuel economy ratings, we find ourselves with high demand and shortened supply. That equals high prices... the question is how to influence choices to encourage conservation even during times of plentiful supply without going the way of the europeans (high taxes) but also preserving choices we have... If you can figure that out, you'll minimize these price spikes...