Americans will take to the roads in record numbers this holiday season. AAA projects that travel will rise by 3.1 percent to 92.3 million during the Dec. 23-Jan. 2 holiday period. Last year travel increased by 4.4 percent, making the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 holiday seasons the first back-to-back increases since 2005-2006 and 2006-2007.

AAA says 27 percent of the U.S. population, accounting for 85.7 million travelers, will be making round-trip journeys of 50 miles or more. Automobile travel will account for 93 percent of the trips.

Motorists will find higher gasoline prices at the pump this year, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), which projects average pump prices for regular gasoline to be about 38 cents a gallon higher than last year. As we've explained on this blo... more »

"Stronger fuel demand tells us a recovery is underway." Those are the words of API's Chief Economist John Felmy today, describing the good news in API's Monthly Statistical Report for November. The report shows that U.S. petroleum deliveries (a measure of demand) climbed 6.5 percent last month over November 2009. The increase was the largest year-to-year increase for any month in 2010.

Deliveries of Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) fuel--the type that is required for all on-road diesel vehicles, including trucks delivering goods--jumped by 13.2 percent in November. Gasoline deliveries rose 3.2 percent last month as compared to the same time period last year.

"Fuel demand continues to strengthen, a positive sign for our economy," John said. "Gasoline deliveries are up three months in a row an... more »

Energy prices are on the minds of many Americans today. As we've reported, gasoline prices have increased recently, and now an Arctic air mass is bringing unusually cold temperature to the East Coast, from Maine to Florida, increasing the demand for heating fuels. If you're wondering how the weather and other factors might influence the price of fuels in the next few weeks, here's some information that might be helpful.

First, gasoline prices have risen by about a dime in the past nine days. AAA says the nationwide average price of gasoline yesterday was $2.958 per gallon.

Also, the U.S. Energy Information Administration's (EIA) Short-Term Energy Outlook released today projects that regular-grade gasoline is likely to average $2.88 per gallon this winter, which is 22 cents a gallon higher... more »

Crude oil prices reached a two-year high on Friday. At the end of the trading day, it closed at $89.19 per barrel, up nearly 21 cents a gallon since November 17.

During the same time period, gasoline prices rose 9.7 cents per gallon to a nationwide average of $2.951, which is the highest level since October 18, 2008. AAA reports that 17 states have retail pump prices above $3.00 a gallon.

As we've noted here, historically gasoline prices have tended to track crude oil. The cost of crude oil is the largest factor in the pump price of gasoline. Several factors also can have an impact, including the value of the dollar (oil is traded in U.S. dollars worldwide) and weather. But the fundamentals of supply and demand play the biggest role. As API statistics show:

• Gasoline supplies are above las... more »

If you drove during the Thanksgiving Day holiday, you probably noticed that the price of gasoline has increased. Since September, gas prices have climbed several cents per gallon.

Why? API's Monthly Statistical Report for October shows that demand for oil products has climbed, signaling a modest improvement in the economy. As demand rises, it puts upward pressure on the cost of the raw material used to produce gasoline--crude oil.

In the first eight months of 2010, crude oil alone made up 67 percent of the price at the gasoline pump. Refining the crude oil into gasoline and retailing added another 18 percent to the retail price of gasoline. And taxes accounted for the remaining 15 percent.