Gas Demand Drops To 4-Month Low, Illinois Price Goes Up

Wait...what? Gas demand has fallen to its lowest level since June, and somehow Illinois' gas prices went up...does that even make sense?

I don't know about the "making sense" part, but the rest of that is true.

According to a report from AAA Chicago, while the drop isn’t out of the ordinary for this time of year (people tend to drive less in the fall), it is a staggering 14% less than last October.

Molly Hart, spokesperson for AAA:

The U.S. has a very healthy level of gasoline stocks due to lower demand and that is keeping gas prices low. The majority of states have cheaper gas prices compared to last month, many paying 3 to 8 cents less. That downward trend at the pump is likely to continue.

You'll notice that Molly said "the majority of states." Not everyone is paying three to eight cents less per gallon, especially here in the Midwest. On the week, five states in the Midwest saw gas prices increase: Ohio (+7 cents), Kentucky (+6 cents), Michigan (+5 cents), Indiana (+1 cent) and Illinois (+1 cent). Of the states with cheaper weekly prices, 20 averages are 2 to 5 cents less than last Monday.

To add to the mix, we've got Tropical Storm Zeta threatening the Gulf of Mexico (and potentially becoming a hurricane by Wednesday). Normally, those conditions could have an effect on gas prices nationwide, but because of our current gasoline surpluses, experts like AAA Chicago don't expect higher gas prices as a result.