Area gas prices continue to plummet

The Dearborn-based auto club says the average price for self-serve regular unleaded gasoline was about $2.49 per gallon on Sunday.

The average gas price in the Harrisburg area is 20 cents lower today than it was a month ago, according to GasBuddy. Joseph area at $2.40, while Traverse City drivers are paying the most at $2.58. In Rockford, the cost of a gallon of regular fell more than a nickel since last week, to $2.50.

Across the Southeast, prices have dipped another five to six cents, which continues a year-long trend that has brought the average Georgia gas price down 91 cents. Price decreases, according to AAA, should drop faster after Labor Day when people are taking fewer vacations and road trips.

But prices at the pump should see a steep drop once the less-expensive winter blend hits stations and peak summertime demand tapers off, according to Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service, which tracks retail prices for AAA.

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, not everyone in the country will see gas under $2/gallon, but those who already have low gas prices could get there by year’s end. That’s because of cheaper crude oil and refinery issues that have been corrected.

What makes the $2.60-a-gallon national average more impressive is that it includes the ridiculously high prices California has had because of gas delivery problems – prices that are also beginning to fall.

Another factor in the gasoline prices was that the West Texas Intermediate slipped to $43.75 per barrel on Friday.