U.S. gasoline demand off despite price dip: MasterCard
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. retail gasoline demand dropped from the previous week last week, even as average retail gasoline prices declined for the second week, MasterCard Advisors said Tuesday.
American motorists pumped an average of 9.462 million barrels per day in the week that ended August 8, dropping 2 percent from the previous week despite a decrease in average retail prices last week of 7 cents, to $3.84 per gallon.
Average retail gasoline prices have dropped 4.6 percent in the last two weeks, but are still 36.7 percent above where they were last year at this time, MasterCard said.
Gasoline demand has fallen 3.8 percent from the same week in 2007, the report said.
"The country has now had six consecutive weeks where the year-over-year declines have surpassed 3 percent," said Michael McNamara, vice president of research and analysis at MasterCard Advisors.
The summer driving season usually boosts gasoline consumption, but this year, gasoline demand has stayed well below last year's levels as high prices at the pump have reduced demand for the motor fuel.
But declines in demand have not been limited to the summer driving season: year to date, gasoline consumption is down 2.4 percent compared to the same period of time in 2007.
The country has had 17 weeks so far this year where year-over-year demand has fallen more than 3 percent, compared to just five weeks of declines over 3 percent in all of 2007.
The four-week moving average for gasoline demand dropped from last year's level, dipping 3.6 percent to 9.575 million barrels per day.
A Reuters poll showed energy analysts forecast that the Energy Information Administration would report a decrease in U.S. gasoline inventories, adding to a large draw in gasoline inventories the previous week.
MasterCard Advisors estimates retail gasoline demand based on aggregate sales activity in the MasterCard payments system coupled with estimates for all other payment forms. MasterCard Advisors is a unit of MasterCard Inc (MA.N).
(Reporting by Rebekah Kebede; Editing by Christian Wiessner)
