Data: U.S. Energy Information Administration; Chart: Axios Visuals
It was nigh on one year ago when gasoline crossed a threshold American drivers had never seen before: $5 a gallon.
Now? We're back to around $3.50.
Driving the news: A slump in the price of crude oil — which accounts for roughly half the price of a gallon of gas — over the last year has helped pull down prices for the fuel.
A barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude — the U.S. benchmark — is around $70, down by a third over the last 12 months.
The intrigue: Gas prices are also down by about 30% since last June — a move that would typically be expected to improve the mood of American consumers. (Along with the rebound in stock prices from their March lows.)
But the latest readings on consumer sentiment show there's still plenty of sourness in supply. One key reading shows consumer sentiment falling to a six-month low.
The bottom line: The still-burbling banking crisis, and the building boil around the debt ceiling face-off in Washington seem to be culprits, according to the latest update consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan.