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November 17, 2005

Gas prices fall and consumption rises

The effort to cut back on gasoline usage in the U.S. was apparently temporary. Demand for gasoline rose an average of 0.3 percent a week during the four-week period ending Nov. 11, compared to the same period a year ago. That was the first rise after three consecutive weeks of declining demand, according to the Energy Information Administration.

"It looks as though the U.S. consumer is returning to his old gas guzzling habits," said James L. Williams, an economist with WTRG Economics, based in London, Ark.

Demand is increasing as gasoline prices continue to drop. In Rhode Island, the average price for regular self-serve was $2.309 on Monday, down 89 cents from its all-time high of $3.199 on Sept. 6.

The Energy Department said that a big reason the price of gasoline has declined was a huge upswing in imported gasoline, which began arriving shortly after the Hurricane Rita hit the Gulf of Mexico.

Posted by Tim Barmann at November 17, 2005 2:06 PM

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