12.01.09, 02:15 PM EST
NEW YORK, Dec 1 (Reuters) - U.S. retail gasoline demand last week rose 3.1 percent from the previous week as Thanksgiving holiday traffic boosted demand, according to a MasterCard SpendingPulse report released on Tuesday.
'Gasoline consumption increased sharply due to holiday traffic,' said Michael McNamara, vice president of research and analysis at MasterCard ( MA - news - people ) Advisors.
Gasoline demand averaged 9.357 million barrels per day during the week ending Nov. 27, unchanged from the same period a year ago, according to the weekly report.
The four-week moving average of U.S. gasoline consumption climbed 0.7 percent year-over-year. Year-to-date, gasoline consumption is up 0.6 percent for 2009 compared with the same period in 2008.
The national average retail prices for gasoline were unchanged at $2.62.
MasterCard Advisors estimates retail gasoline demand based on aggregate sales activity in the MasterCard payments system coupled with estimates for all other payment forms including cash and checks. MasterCard Advisors is a unit of MasterCard Inc.
Review: http://www.forbes.com/feeds/afx/2009/12/01/afx7172177.html
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