A new infographic tracks the peaks and dips of U.S. gas prices over the past 40 years. The team at Auteria used resources like Energy.gov and AAA to collect pricing data and delve into the various causes of gasoline pricing increases and decreases since 1977. The graphic highlights how historical prices look when adjusted for inflation. It also focuses on a few reasons for the most significant pricing highs and lows in recent history.
“Since we’ve spent nearly five decades building fuel pump assemblies, the fluctuation of gas prices is something we’ve always tracked,” says Ana Rivera, Product Manager at Auteria. “As vehicle and part innovations continue to improve fuel efficiency, we wanted to chart other factors that have affected how much drivers spend on gas.”
In 1978, gas averaged $0.63 a gallon, which is about $2.41 when adjusted for inflation. This was a mere four years after the U.S. oil crisis had ended. As the chart reveals, the 1981-82 prices jumped to an average of $1.25 per gallon, which averages about $3.00 per gallon when adjusted for inflation. Like the extreme prices of the 1970s, this early 80s peak was caused by an embargo. The difficult socio-political issues between the United States and Iran had resulted in the U.S. embargo of oil from Iran.
The graphic follows the pricing reprieve U.S. drivers gained from the mid-1980s until Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. Gas pump prices on average rose $0.19 a gallon during the nine months of that “oil price shock.”
Another steady factor in pricing is taxes. Americans have been paying a federal tax on gasoline since 1932. The chart illustrates a dip in gas prices in 1993. Part of that 1993 price was the federal excise tax on gas that became 18.4 cents per gallon. It has remained this amount ever since.
OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) has been around since 1960. This group sets a standard production amount for all members. In 1999, the group met in Vienna and lamented the low gas prices of the day. At this gathering, OPEC members agreed to combine their efforts to reduce production to a total of 350,000 barrels daily. As the infographic illustrates, this agreement caused gas prices to jump about $0.40 a gallon at the beginning of the 21st century.
As the chart reveals, U.S. gas prices continued to climb throughout the early 2000s. Efforts to reduce gas costs had been evolving and, by 2000, much of the gas American drivers used contained 10 percent plant-based ethanol. The U.S. was fighting two wars for more than six years when the 2008 recession hit.
It was July 2008 when gas prices hit an all-time high of $4.11 per gallon, despite a 2008 study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory that determined the ethanol-gasoline blending and ethanol subsidies actually reduced most fuel prices by $0.17 per gallon. As the economy started to come back, prices at the pump dipped.
Looking at 2013, drivers were paying a substantial $3.49 per gallon. That price was down $0.11 a gallon from the previous year. Gas prices hit an all-time high in 2012, at $3.60 per gallon.
American oil shale production was going strong in 2015 and prices at the pump were steadily declining. OPEC did not decide to reduce oil production as they’d previously done when gas prices fell. AAA reported the average price of gas per gallon was $1.87 in 2016, the lowest gas had been in 7 years.
Compared to the reduced prices on standard unleaded gas, the mid-grade gas was about $0.25 higher than standard in 2016. Premium gas was, on average, $0.47 more than the base grade gasoline.
In 2017, the average price per-gallon was considerably more than 2016’s price. It was $2.42, which is actually only a penny more than the inflation-adjusted gas price in 1978.
“Geo-political factors, crude oil, refining costs, taxes, distribution and marketing will always affect the price at the pump,” Rivera says. “As auto makers and parts manufacturers, we must keep building quality products that save drivers money on fuel and other car-related costs.”
See the full graphic here: https://auteria.us/n-13512-40-years-of-gasoline-prices.html
About Auteria
Auteria provides fuel pump assemblies built to OEM specifications. Auteria has served customers for nearly five decades and is committed to supplying North American-made products and services that meet exact specifications at wholesale prices. The company only partners with manufacturers who are IS9000 or TS16949 certified to ensure the highest quality. For more information, visit http://auteria.us/