Nearly one month after President Joe Biden tried to bring down the prices at the pump, the average price for a gallon has decreased, but that downward trend could be headed toward a reversal.
According to AAA, the average price for a gallon of gas nationally is $3.31, down from $3.41 a month ago.
Still, the national average is elevated from a year ago when it was $2.20. And in California, the average price of gas has seen an even smaller decrease, falling just three cents from a month ago to $4.66.
Meanwhile, Texas has the lowest average in the country at $2.90 per gallon, down 10 cents from a month ago.
While gas prices have decreased from a month ago, AAA reports that gas supply remains tight while the demand last week increased.
“Typically, growing demand and tight supply would support rising pump prices, but fluctuations in the price of crude oil have helped to put downward pressure on prices. However, this week, crude prices have risen above $70 per barrel. If crude prices continue to climb, pump prices will likely follow suit,” it added.
As gas prices hit a seven-year high, Biden announced the decision to release 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Oil Reserve “to lower prices for Americans and address the mismatch between demand exiting the pandemic and supply.”
After that announcement, Biden tweeted, “This week, we launched a major effort to moderate the price of oil — an effort that will span the globe in its reach and ultimately reach your corner gas station.”
“It will take time, but before long you should see the price of gas drop where you fill up your tank,” he added.
This week, we launched a major effort to moderate the price of oil — an effort that will span the globe in its reach and ultimately reach your corner gas station.
— President Biden (@POTUS) November 27, 2021
It will take time, but before long you should see the price of gas drop where you fill up your tank.
The president also asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate whether “illegal conduct is costing families at the pump.”
He pointed out that the price of gas was on the rise while “oil and gas companies’ costs are declining.”
While Biden sought to use tools at his disposal to bring gas prices down, Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, told The Dispatch in November that the COVID-19 pandemic led gas companies to shut down oil production, which helped drive prices up.
He added that Biden “doesn’t have a lot of really good cards right now to play” to bring gas prices down.
Earlier this month, the president touted declines in gas prices which he said was a sign of “progress.”
“We’re gonna keep at it to ensure the American people are paying their fair share for gas, not being gouged for gas,” he vowed.
