Gas Prices Rise in PA; Nation Enters 2021 on a Lower Note at the Pump

The average price of gasoline across Western Pennsylvania is four cents higher this week at $2.518 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                  $2.518
Average price during the week of December 28, 2020                              $2.475
Average price during the week of January 6, 2020                                    $2.910

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$2.677      Altoona
$2.482      Beaver
$2.671      Bradford
$2.540      Brookville
$2.426      Butler
$2.452      Clarion
$2.531      DuBois
$2.666      Erie
$2.393      Greensburg
$2.659      Indiana
$2.414      Jeannette
$2.571      Kittanning
$2.290      Latrobe
$2.616      Meadville
$2.600      Mercer
$2.241      New Castle
$2.645      New Kensington
$2.643      Oil City
$2.542      Pittsburgh
$2.359      Sharon
$2.533      Uniontown
$2.619      Warren
$2.342      Washington

Trend Analysis:
While the national gas price average ($2.25) is nine cents more than last month, January gas prices are already 33 cents cheaper than this time last year. That is the largest year-over-year difference at the beginning of January since 2015.

Today’s average has remained unchanged for the past 12 days. This pump price stability is credited to consistent crude oil prices in late December, about $47-48/barrel, combined with low demand. U.S. gasoline demand, as recorded by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), was at the lowest level for the last week of December in 23 years (since 1998) – at 8.1 million b/d.

AAA expects demand to dwindle in coming weeks and gas prices to likely be cheaper, especially if crude oil holds at the current price point. How high or low gas prices will go in 2021 will largely depend on crude oil prices, supply and demand. AAA expects that as the Coronavirus vaccine becomes more widely available and if states loosen travel restrictions, Americans will begin to drive more which will lead to an impact at the pump.

Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.