Betty Humphries

RICHMOND — Gasoline demand numbers look more like summer than fall in the Energy Information Administration’s latest reports. However, despite the high demand rate and a draw in U.S stocks, the national average for a gallon of gasoline held steady on the week at $2.60.
“Gas prices continue to fluctuate across the country, though on the week the majority of states saw prices only increase or decrease by one or two cents,” said Jeanette Casselano, AAA spokeswoman. “The largest volatility at the pump continues to be seen in the West Coast and  Rockies states along with a handful of states in the Great Lakes and Central region.”
This week’s average price is 6 cents cheaper than last month and 16-cents cheaper than last year at this time.
The nation’s top 10 largest weekly changes are: Michigan (-9 cents), Ohio (+8 cents), Idaho (+7 cents), Illinois (-5 cents), Utah (+5 cents), Indiana (+5 cents), Florida (+4 cents), Kentucky (+4 cents), Georgia (+4 cents) and Delaware (+4 cents).
The nation’s top 10 least expensive markets are: Louisiana ($2.22), Mississippi ($2.22), Texas ($2.24), South Carolina ($2.26), Missouri ($2.27), Alabama ($2.27), Virginia ($2.29), Arkansas ($2.30), Oklahoma ($2.30) and Tennessee ($2.30).
Motorists in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states continue to see the lowest pump price volatility in the nation with changes of just one to two pennies. 
The week brought small increases in Pennsylvania (+2 cents), New Jersey (+2 cent), Delaware (+2 cents), North Carolina (+1 cent) and Maine (+1 cent). Gas prices in the region range from $2.29 to $2.77.
Although crude prices rose sharply on Friday, they mostly fell last week after EIA’s report showed that total domestic crude inventories increased by 5.7 million bbl last week, bringing the new total to 438.9 million bbl. 
The current level is 12.8 million bbl higher than last year’s level at this same time.