LOCAL ECONOMIC SNAPSHOT | GAS PRICES

Pain at the pump

By ELIZABETH SOUDER
Staff Writer esouder@dallasnews.com

The gas pump has been a painful place this year. Its a sad thing when it costs $35 to fill up a Honda Civic. The U.S. Energy Information Administration says the outlook is improving for drivers. The agency cut its forecast for average U.S. gasoline prices this summer 16 cents to $3.79 per gallon. Still hurts? Share the burden with the oil companies by driving less.

U.S. and Texas production

Oil production is rising in the U.S. thanks to new production technology. In 2011, the U.S. produced 11 percent more oil than five years earlier. Production growth is uneven from one state to the next. Production in barrels of crude oil: Texas production
3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.0 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11

U.S. production

United States: 2.7 billion United States: 2.1 billion

Texas: 678 million Texas: 533 million

State of oil production

States where oil production has risen more than 30 percent in the past five years States where oil production has risen by less than 30 percent in the past five years

Gasoline consumption is rising again

Gallons of gasoline purchased in Texas: (In billions)
2010 1.1 1.0 0.9 2011 2012

April 2012: 1.03 billion

States where oil production has declined in the past five years

States that produce less than 50,000 barrels of oil per day

0.8 J F M A M J J A S O N D

Higher prices
Retail regular gasoline prices, per gallon, for the Gulf Coast region, from New Mexico to Alabama:
4.00 3.50 3.00 2.50 2.00 1.50 1.00 .50 0 J FMAM J J A S ONDJ FMAM J J A SOND J FMA 2010 2011 2012

$3.77

SOURCES: U.S. Energy Information Administration; Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

The bottom line

Typically what weve seen is the gas prices peak right before the Memorial Day holiday; however this year weve seen a steady decline. [Texas Memorial Day weekend] travel is expected to go up 2 percent. Most of the travel is going to be through automobile. I do think that crude oil prices are going to continue to fall and increasing production in the United States is only one of many reasons thats going to continue. The more resource that is produced in politically stable areas, the more stable the price of the commodity will be. Peyton Feltus, founder of energy consultancy Randolph Risk Management The price of gasoline, the level of smog and the amount of headache the U.S. has over Middle Eastern politics is directly connected to your foot on the accelerator. Slow down or park it, and solve a tiny little bit of the worlds problems.

Doug Shupe, AAA Texas spokesman

Elizabeth Souder, staff writer, The Dallas Morning News