Mahoning Valley - Despite a record amount of people traveling for the Fourth of July in 2023, gas prices in the Mahoning Valley continue to fall.

This week, the average price for a gallon of gasoline is seven cents lower at $3.210 per gallon compared to last week's $3.287 per gallon and last year's $4.591 per gallon.

AAA predicted that over 43 million people would hit the road for the Fourth of July holiday this year breaking travel records. Despite that, the national average is just one cent higher than last week.

According to the latest Energy Information Administration (EIA) data, gas demand increased slightly from 9.31 to 9.6 million barrels per day. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 2.5 million barrels to 219.5 million barrels.

Oil prices increased by $2 last week due to market concerns that supply may grow tighter throughout the remainder of the year. However, price increases have been capped due to ongoing market fears that a recession will occur.

The EIA reported that total domestic crude inventories decreased by 1.5 million barrels to 452.2 million barrels.