Gasoline purchases increased by 7.6% while the price fell by more than 14%.
In an apparent response to the decline in the price of this fuel, gasoline consumption in Puerto Rico increased by 7.6% during 2023, compared to a decline of more than 14%.
The latest data from the Department of Consumer Affairs (DACO) (prices) and the Department of the Treasury (consumption) are for October 2023, but this pattern of consumption growth was consistent up to February of the year recently ended.
According to these data, gasoline consumption last October was 74.3 million gallons, which is 3.3% more than the consumption of 71.9 million in the same month of 2022.
Accumulated consumption during those 10 months of 2023 was then 753 million gallons, which is 53 million, or 7.6%, more than consumption in the same period in 2022.
Comparison of the first four months of the current financial year 2023-2024 (July to October) maintains the same growth trend in consumption with 304.6 million, which was 24.7 million more than the previous year, an increase of 8.8%.
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price reduction
This increase in consumption was equivalent to a 14.6% decline in the average price of gasoline.
Its estimate for these 10 months was $3.48 per gallon, which represents a favorable amount compared to last year’s average price of $4.08. The data average price for the month of October was $3.43 per gallon, a 10.4% decrease compared to the $3.83 reported for the same month in 2022.
The cent decrease in October numbers averaged 40.2; 40.5 for regular gasoline and 39.76 for premium or super gasoline. However, diesel gasoline had the biggest decline with -74.78 cents year over year.
This decline in the average price of gasoline and related regular and premium prices coincides with the average decline projected for that country in 2023 by the United States Energy Information Agency, which was 43 cents per gallon.
“Relatively lower gasoline prices primarily reflect lower oil prices in 2023 compared to 2022 and higher gasoline inventories in the second half of 2023,” the agency’s report said.
For comparison, it’s clear that the average annual price of gasoline in 2022 was the highest since 2014, when adjusted for inflation.
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