Comment on the August 27 prediction: CORRECT, as we had no hikes through the Labor Day weekend, at least in Michigan.
Tuesday, September 5, 2023, 7:00 PM: Twice today, I received a notification that oil prices were continuing their recent rise: “Oil prices reach the highest levels since November 2022”. Yet, wholesale gas prices have been sliding since August 14. With gasoline, we are seeing the end-of-summer drop off, as “summer gas” stocks are on clearance, with the cheaper autumn prices on their way. Retailers can switch to winter-blend fuel beginning September 15.
This makes playing The Gas Game at this time of year difficult. In past years, I’ve often been WRONG to predict hikes in September, because I wasn’t paying attention to the switch to winter gas. So what am I doing right now? I filled up this afternoon (I was low on gas) in the $3.60’s, and neither a hike nor no hike will surprise me this week. Yeah, I know that’s not very helpful. -EA
Indy area Greedway hike to $3.799.
Sunoco in Houghton Lake went to 3.799 yesterday
The Gasgame 2.0. Speedway near me decided being 44c over the Delta Sonic down the block was too much. They lowered their price to $4.09 or just 26c over Delta Sonic. A couple months ago another nearby Speedway in a different direction got to 60c above the competition before starting to close the gap. They seem to rotate this strategy among stations, although in almost all cases they never undercut anyone any more. Is it different in markets where they hold a bigger share than in Chicagoland?
Jim – While recently visiting in Michigan City, Indiana, I’ve noticed that their Speedways have been less competitive. One weekend they remained 5 cents more than the station across the street. In the past, they would quickly match.