Dame mas gasolina

Gas goes missing from the data and other intrigue from the most recent iteration of new-normals

The recession giveth! Inflation is definitely not 0%, but net-new inflation is 0%, so that’s good. Markets have seen a little lift, as well. With all that good news, Random Walk takes a moment to spin some tunes and ponder the mysteries of our new-normal: gas, wfh and the hottest new thing in renting.

Things we think

Dame mas gasolina

When Random Walk became an expert in energy markets about 6 weeks ago, there was no expectation that data would become a source of intrigue and controversy. And yet here we are. Gather round children, because there’s a mystery afoot.

Take a look at the EIA’s “Gas Supplied” chart below—Gas Supplied in this case is (confusingly) a proxy for demand, i.e. the gas supplied to retail pumps is the gas demanded by the consumer:

• As you can see at the green arrow, about a year ago (July 2021), our gas consumption was pretty much “back to normal” i.e. we consumed only slightly less gas than before the pandemic.

• About 9 months later, however, in March 2022 (the red arr…