How Many of Gallons of Gas Can You Purchase With Your Weekly Income?

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The average weekly income in the US has been going up in the last fifty years, at least in nominal terms, as seen in the first graph. The price of a gallon of gas has been trending up as well, with spikes beginning in 2002 up to 2008, when gas prices decreased dramatically as a consequence of the economic recession. In 2010 gas prices increased again and continue rising to this day, as seen in the second graph. It is worth noting that the number of gallons of gas that can be purchased by a person earning an average income has been decreasing steadily since 1998.

 

Energy Consumption in China

The National Bureau of Statistics of China reports energy consumption in metric tons of Standard Coal Equivalent. The graph below shows that total energy consumption in China grew from 571 million tons of SCE in 1978 to 2462 million tons of SCE in 2006. Note that one SCE equals 29.31 Giga Joules (low heat).

Energy consumption in China 1978-2006

Source: National Bureau of Statistics of China

You may also want to see our China section for more facts and statistics.