by Wolf Richter
Wolf Street
I see gasoline prices rising further despite this modest short-term & long-term demand destruction.
The price mayhem going on at the pump is now leading to some demand destruction. We’ve been seeing signs of it. We’re in the beginning of driving season, but gasoline demand is not following the classic pattern of a seasonal surge.
The Energy Department’s EIA reported that gasoline consumption, at 8.85 million barrels per day (four-week moving average) was down by 2.7% from the same period in 2021, and by 6.1% from the same period in 2019. Consumption in 2022 (red line) is not following the summer driving surge: it’s up only 1.3% from early March. But in May 2019 (gray), consumption was up 5.2% from March, and in May 2021 (black), consumption was up 11.9% from March.