Unexpectedly weak gasoline consumption in the United States reported for the month of January has been blamed by some market participants for the continued slide in oil prices on Tuesday. Gasoline consumption fell almost 0.6 percent in January compared with the same month a year earlier, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (“Petroleum Supply Monthly”, EIA, April 4). The EIA’s monthly estimate for gasoline consumption contrasted with more recent weekly data showing strong year-on-year growth in gasoline demand. The monthly estimate has been seized on by bearish traders and analysts as evidence crude and gasoline prices have risen too far too fast over the last two months. But on closer inspection there is nothing surprising about the monthly reading for January, which […]