U.S. Gasoline Falls to $3.94 as Brent Crude Nears $90 a Barrel

U.S. regular gasoline averaged $3.94 a gallon Wednesday, Nov. 11, after the national price first moved below $4 on Tuesday in months. The average has fallen roughly 40 cents over the past month, with much of the decline concentrated in the last two weeks.

The latest reading extends the pullback from the $4.1837 average recorded Oct. 31 in earlier U.S. gasoline coverage.

Falling Brent crude prices were the main driver. Brent was about $90 a barrel as more oil moved from the Middle East through pipelines and traders responded positively to intensified diplomatic efforts between the United States and Iran. Refineries use crude oil to make gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

Seasonal changes also helped ease pump prices. Driving demand tends to decline in colder weather, refineries typically finish annual maintenance by late fall, and winter-blend gasoline uses more butane, which lowers its cost. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Energy (DOE) announced that this year's switch to the winter blend would be scheduled for Sept. 1, earlier than the usual timing around Sept. 15. The agencies cited gasoline prices that had risen amid the Iran war.

Lower prices do not mean the oil supply chain has returned to pre-conflict conditions. Ships taking longer routes to avoid the Strait of Hormuz would need to resume their usual routes, while crude production, shipping and refining recover and depleted stockpiles are replenished. Jaime Brito, executive director of refining and oil markets, wrote in an email, “However, this does not mean a complete ‘normalization,’ a return to the price levels we had before this conflict started.” The process could take months after a lasting peace deal.