Holiday travel and a hurricane did little to move gas prices this month, according to a new report from the automobile Association of America (AAA). The report revealed that the national average for a gallon of gas rose three cents to $3.54 compared with the first week of July. 

The increase was well below expert expectations as Hurricane Beryl brought destruction and flooding to various areas of the United States. Oil remained just above $80 per barrel, with new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showing a slight dip in gas prices. 

In May, the U.S. government announced that it was releasing more than 1 million barrels of oil to help curb rising fuel costs ahead of the summer travel season. Following Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the government established a Northeast reserve in the area in preparation for future disaster scenarios. 

The sales, from storage sites in New Jersey and Maine, were allocated in increments of 100,000 barrels at a time. According to the Energy Department, the goal was to create a competitive bidding process that ensures gasoline can flow into local retailers before the July Fourth holiday and sold at competitive prices, to “lower costs for American families and consumers.”

“The damage from Beryl caused limited damage to Gulf Coast energy facilities,” said Andrew Gross, a AAA spokesperson. “And while a record 60 million travelers were forecast to hit the highways for the July Fourth holiday, the overall demand number for gasoline dropped. That is a rare feat for a holiday week and may point to a change in demand trends.”

Gas demand fell from 9.42 million barrels per day to 9.39 in the second week of July. Domestic gasoline stocks also dropped from 231.7 million barrels to 229.7 million barrels, despite increased production to 10.3 million barrels per day.

The AAA noted tepid gasoline demand and waffling oil costs may lead to some short-term stability in pump prices.

As of July 11, the national average for gasoline was $3.54, which is 10 cents higher compared with the same time in 2023. 

The most expensive markets gasoline prices are in California, Washington and Nevada, while the least expensive markets are Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana, where gas prices are well below an average of $3.11 a barrel.