1.) For some of the most densely populated areas in the U.S., there has been a switch from "summer blend" to "winter blend" gasoline (to adjust the vapor points achieved to align with seasonal temps), which drops the price annually in those areas.
2.) A concern with the economy of China that continues to suggest less demand, which has impacted not only the price of oil, but the price of refined products like gasoline.
3.) And regarding this war, aside from the terrorist groups in Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq randomly lobbing munitions and drones at Israel and/or U.S. bases in the area, those countries are not actually engaged in an active war that would impact their oil production.
4.) A supply thing that has triggered a drop in the price of oil (which has pricing that moves separately from gasoline), despite the cuts from some OPEC+ countries. This would likely be due to an uptick in U.S. production and increases in Venezuelan oil into the market (that has recently been permitted with the lifting of some sanctions). I.e.,
US oil and gas production set to break record in 2023 despite UN climate goals
Oliver Milman in New York
@olliemilman
Mon 27 Nov 2023 06.00 EST
Last modified on Mon 27 Nov 2023 09.19 EST
The United States is poised to extract more oil and gas than ever before in 2023, a year that is certain to be the hottest ever recorded, providing a daunting backdrop to crucial United Nations climate talks that hold the hope of an agreement to end the era of fossil fuels.
The US’s status as the world’s leading oil and gas behemoth has only strengthened this year, even amid warnings from Joe Biden himself over the unfolding climate crisis,
with the latest federal government forecast showing a record 12.9m barrels of crude oil, more than double what was produced a decade ago, will be extracted in 2023.
Records will also be broken this year for gas production, with a glut of new export terminals on the Gulf of Mexico coast facilitating a boom that will see US exports of liquified natural gas (or LNG) double in the next four years.
Tellingly, the US government expects this frenzy of oil and gas activity to continue at near-record levels right up to 2050, a point at which scientists say planet-heating emissions must be eliminated to avoid catastrophic climate breakdown. A third of the world’s planned oil and gas expansion in this period will occur in the US, a recent report found.
(snip)
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/nov/27/us-oil-gas-record-fossil-fuels-cop28-united-nations
One of the limiters however, has been a dearth of refineries to produce the gasoline. But even with that, at least this year, the hurricane season, that often forces drillers and refineries offline in the Gulf of Mexico area for periods of time, didn't produce any in that area. So disruptions were kept to a minimum.
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