Gas prices continue to fall

AAA reports drivers in 44 states continue to pay gas prices below $2 per gallon. Extremely cheaper gas prices are found in Texas, Missouri, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois Michigan and Kansas.

At a press conference in Chicago on Friday Durbin said, “Two weeks ago I paid $1.51 a gallon for gasoline in downstate IL”. Senior Petroleum analyst for the website Gasbuddy.com, Patrick DeHaan, says we thought the price one year ago at $2.20 was a good deal. 68 a gallon. Most Cities across are region here are all coming in under the national average.

The cheapest gasoline prices in over 12 years are showing up in some lucky states in the heart of the nation, with previously unthinkable 99-cent gasoline becoming a strong possibility as wholesale gas prices plunge amidst growing supply.

“It’s typically where a small number of dominant retail chains will push prices as low as they can go, sometimes even to the point where they’re taking a loss on the gas, simply to drive traffic into those convenience stores”.

Experts warn the low prices may not last longer because it is hard for oil refineries to stay open without making much of a profit.

GasBuddy said Tuesday that nine Midwestern states, including Minnesota, Wisconsin and IL, have the lowest average gas prices since early 2004. The price of crude oil continued its tumble, coming in at $29.92 per barrel around 2 p.m. on Monday, February 9, 2016. “This oversupply of winter-blend gasoline is going to have to be liquidated, and there’s no better way to get rid of it than lower prices”. “The shift in specifications will lead to an eventual lift in prices once winter gasoline is gone”. In the days ahead, expect this seasonal “clearance sale” of gasoline to continue, leading to lower prices in most areas. This excludes those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and puts USA crude oil inventories at “near levels not seen for this time of year in at least the last 80 years”.