Here’s something you might not have imagined a few months ago: The price of gasoline in the United States is falling so quickly that it is having a positive impact on the overall inflation rate.
By Vance Cariaga
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The federal government’s gasoline index for August 2022 fell 10.6% from the previous month, according to the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, released Tuesday, Sept. 13, by the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics. It was the index’s biggest monthly decline of the year and marked the second straight month it moved lower.
The gas index’s double-digit drop helped offset steep gains in the prices of shelter, food and medical care, the BLS said, which kept the overall inflation rate to a slight increase of 0.1% for August.
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The year-over-year numbers remain ugly, however. The gasoline index rose a staggering 25.6% over the past 12 months, contributing to a 23.8% gain in the energy index and an 8.3% increase in the overall inflation rate.
Even so, prices at the pump have been on a sharp decline of late. Nationally, the average gas price stood at $3.707 a gallon as of Sept 13, 2022, according to AAA. That’s down from $3.779 a week ago and $3.965 a month ago, and well below the all-time high of $5.016 a gallon set on June 13. Prices are even creeping closer to a year ago when the national average was $3.176.
In some areas of the country the average price has fallen below $3 a gallon, Quartz reported, with the lowest average prices being reported in Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi.
Falling gas prices are mainly the result of a global decrease in oil prices, analysts say.
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