Real Gas Prices Now At All-Time High, But Will Fall

It's now official: Real, inflation-adjusted gasoline prices in the U.S. are at an all-time, according to data from the EIA (see chart above). The previous high was $3.426 per gallon in March 1981 (in today's dollars), which was exceeded in April ($3.466 per gallon) and May ($3.671 per gallon) of this year.

The EIA is forecasting gas prices below $3.50 by the end of this year, and below $3.00 by the end of next year (see shaded area in chart).