Did you know that in the summer of 1990, the average price of a gallon of regular conventional gasoline in the United States was just $1.19?
That's not a typo. According to weekly data tracked by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Americans were filling up their tanks for barely more than a dollar a gallon as recently as the early 1990s.
The data tells a fascinating story of steady climb. Within just a few weeks of that $1.19 low in August 1990, prices had already crept up to $1.35 by mid-October — a 13% jump in roughly two months. That spike coincided with Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, which sent oil markets into a frenzy and gave Americans an early taste of the price volatility that would define the decades ahead.
What stands out looking at this historical record is how quickly gas prices can shift in response to geopolitical events. A price that felt painful in 1990 would feel like a dream today, when drivers routinely pay three or four times that amount.
These 200 weekly data points are a reminder that energy costs don't just reflect supply and demand — they reflect wars, policy decisions, and global uncertainty. The next time you wince at the pump, remember: the trend line has been pointing up for over three decades.
Source: Regular Conventional Gas Price (GASREGCOVW), Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED).
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