How Affordable Is U.S. Gasoline Compared To The Rest Of The World?

According to GasBuddy, the average price for a gallon of gas in the United States is currently about $2.20/gallon. However, Americans who have taken summer vacations know that prices can vary significantly depending on location. For example, the average gas price in South Carolina is only $1.87/gal, while drivers in California are paying an average price of $2.83/gal.

If these price variations seem extreme, they are nothing compared to how much the price of gasoline varies around the world. According to a new Bloomberg graphic, Venezuelans are currently paying an incomprehensible $0.02/gal for gas, the cheapest price of any country in the world. The only two countries with gas prices lower than $1/gal are Kuwait ($0.88) and Saudi Arabia ($0.91).

Despite grumbles from American drivers, the United States is on the low end of the spectrum, ranked twelfth out of 61 countries. Neighbors Mexico ($2.77) and Canada ($3.45) both pay higher prices.

Norway ($6.53), Latvia ($6.59) and Hong Kong ($7.12) pay the highest prices for gasoline.

Related Link: Analyst: Natural Gas Glut Is Masking Booming U.S. Demand

In terms of affordability based on average daily income, U.S. gas looks much cheaper. The United States is third behind only Venezuela and Kuwait when it comes to affordability. While a gallon of gas costs only 1.64 percent of a workers average daily income in the United States, workers in India pay more than 80 percent of a day’s wages for one gallon of gasoline.

So far this year, the United States Gasoline Fund, LP UGA is down 18.1 percent, while the United States Oil Fund LP (ETF) USO is down just 1.8 percent.

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Disclosure: The author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.