Beginning on July 1, Nebraska’s new gas tax rate will be 27.7 cents per gallon, marking a decrease of one cent.
The current average price per gallon is $2.90, where it has generally hovered for the past month. Increasing gasoline stock levels have helped to keep gas prices mostly stable across the country.
Despite the latest increase in demand, many motorists are not seeing significant pump price jumps due to these increasing stock levels, which have significantly built over the last four weeks. According to Energy Information Administration (EIA) data, total gasoline stocks sit at 242.9 million bbl, which is a 9 million bbl surplus compared to the same week in June 2019. Stock levels have increased in line with refinery utilization rates, which are up to its highest rate since January 2020. Demand is also trending higher. In EIA’s latest report, demand increased by nearly 1 million b/d to 9.3 million b/d.
Last week, crude oil jumped to $72/bbl, but decreased by $2/bbl at Friday’s close. If crude prices trend at this or a lower price point for a sustained period, that would help to minimize jumps at the pump through the end of this month.