NEW YORK, Feb 25, 2026, 14:29 EST — Regular session
U.S. gasoline futures edged higher on Wednesday after government data showed a dip in gasoline stockpiles, even as crude inventories ballooned. NYMEX April RBOB, the main U.S. wholesale gasoline futures contract, was up about 1.5 cents at $2.245 a gallon. (Barchart)
The move matters now because wholesale prices tend to filter into what drivers pay at the pump, usually with a lag. The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline stood at $2.975 on Wednesday, AAA data showed. (AAA Fuel Prices)
The Energy Information Administration said total motor gasoline inventories fell by 1.0 million barrels last week, while refiners ran at 88.6% of capacity. The same report showed crude stockpiles rose by 16.0 million barrels to 435.8 million.
Oil futures slipped after the data, with traders fixated on the size of the crude build and a record 2.7 million barrels-per-day adjustment factor in the EIA figures. Giovanni Staunovo, a commodity analyst at UBS, called it “a bearish (EIA) report with a large crude build,” but said prices were still “more influenced” by Middle East tensions. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a 1.5 million-barrel rise in crude inventories. (Reuters)
Gasoline got the better headline: stocks down, production down, and refinery runs lower than the week before. Those are the ingredients that can tighten supply if they linger into the next few reports.
RBOB is the benchmark wholesale gasoline contract used by refiners and fuel blenders. It can move quickly on shifts in refinery output, imports and demand, while retail prices also reflect taxes and local distribution costs.
At the pump, that difference shows up as a slow grind rather than a straight line. Drivers see the national average, but the spread between low- and high-priced states stays wide.
But the crude build was the number that grabbed traders first, and the report’s big adjustment factor added another layer of uncertainty. If crude keeps stacking up, it can squeeze refinery margins and drag gasoline prices with it.
Refiners and fuel retailers watch the gap between gasoline and crude — the “crack spread” — because it drives profit on every barrel they run. A firmer gasoline screen against softer crude usually supports that margin, until it doesn’t.
The next big checkpoint is the EIA’s next weekly petroleum report on March 4, when traders will look for confirmation on whether gasoline inventories keep drawing or flip back to builds. (Eia)
