The American Petroleum Institute reports that levels of demand in gasoline have fallen to levels not seen since June 2004, spurred on by an overall increase in the fuel-efficiency of the U.S. vehicle fleet and the sluggish economy.

In June, Americans were consuming on average, 9.18 million barrels of gasoline per day, 0.5% lower than one year ago. The average price-per-gallon in America however, is now $.25 higher than it was one year ago.

U.S. oil production has been erratically declining since the 1980″s having dipped from an average high of 9 million barrels daily to 5.5 million barrels daily. The country still meets approximately 28% of its daily need from domestic production, with about 3.1% of the total supply being a product of Alaska.

- By: Stephen Calogera

Source: USAToday