Section 9. Energy prices

Monthly Energy Review, July, 2004

Crude Oil. The average price of domestic crude oil at the wellhead was $33.21 per barrel in April 2004, 30 percent above the level of April 2003. The refiner acquisition cost of imported crude oil in April 2004 was $32.42 per barrel, 32 percent higher than the April 2003 level. The average cost of domestic crude oil in April 2004 was $35.31, 24 percent more than the April 2003 average.

Motor Gasoline. The national city average retail price of unleaded regular gasoline at all types of stations was $2.01 per gallon in May 2004, 30 percent higher than the price in May 2003. The price of unleaded premium gasoline averaged $2.19 in May 2004, 26 percent higher than the price in May 2003.

Residual Fuel Oil. The average price, excluding taxes, of residual fuel oil sold to end users in April 2004 was 67 cents per gallon, 1 percent lower than the previous month's price but 3 percent higher than the April 2003 average. The average resale price, excluding taxes, of residual fuel oil in April 2004 was 63 cents, 1 percent higher than the March 2004 price and 12 percent higher than the price 1 year earlier.

Jet Fuel. The average price, excluding taxes, of kerosene-type jet fuel sold to end users in April 2004 was $1.07 per gallon, 4 percent higher than the previous month's average price and 30 percent more than the April 2003 average price.

No. 2 Distillate Fuel Oil. The April 2004 national average price, excluding taxes, of heating oil sold to residential customers was $1.41 per gallon, slightly lower than the March 2004 price but 5 percent higher than the April 2003 price. The average price of No. 2 fuel oil sold to all end users was $1.02 per gallon in April 2004, 1 percent higher than the March 2004 price and 12 percent higher than the price 1 year earlier.

Electricity. The average retail price of electricity sold to all ultimate consumers in the United States in March 2004 (latest month for which data are available) was 7.27 cents per kilowatthour, 2 percent higher than the average price in March 2003. The price of electricity sold to residential consumers in March 2004 averaged 8.61 cents per kilowatthour, 4 percent higher than the March 2003 price. The price of electricity sold to commercial consumers averaged 7.93 cents per kilowatthour in March 2004, 1 percent higher than the March 2003 price. The price of electricity sold to industrial users in March 2004 averaged 4.90 cents per kilowatthour, slightly higher than the price 1 year earlier.

Beginning with January 1986, new series of national average price estimates were based on a statistically derived sample of both publicly and privately owned electric utilities. Previously, average price estimates were derived from selected privately owned electric utilities and were not national averages.

Natural Gas. The average wellhead price of natural gas for March 2004 (latest month for which data are available) was estimated as $4.97 per thousand cubic feet, 26 percent lower than the March 2003 price.

The average price of natural gas delivered to the electric power sector was $5.47 per thousand cubic feet in March 2004, 24 percent lower than the March 2003 price. The average price of natural gas used by residential consumers in March 2004 was $9.84 per thousand cubic feet, 2 percent higher than the March 2003 price. The average price of natural gas used by commercial consumers in March 2004 was $8.76 per thousand cubic feet, 2 percent lower than the March 2003 price. The average price of natural gas used by industrial consumers in March 2004 was $5.85 per thousand cubic feet, 27 percent below the March 2003 price.

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