Fuel Prices Dropping

CAMARILLO, Calif. -- Last month's spurt in gas prices appears to have topped off nationally and will likely begin dropping, said fuel analyst Trilby Lundberg.

Over the past three weeks, the average price of a gallon of self-serve regular rose just 0.14 cents per gallon, to $1.72, according to the Lundberg Survey of 8,000 gas stations and convenience stores. "I'm calling that no change," Lundberg said. "The surge is over."

Lundberg credited a confluence of three factors for the stall in what had been a precipitous rise in gas prices in recent weeks: correction of regional shortages, a drop in the price of crude and the end to the summer driving season, when demand for gasoline typically peaks. Between Aug. 8 and Aug. 22, the average price of gas in the nation zoomed nearly 16 cents per gallon, driven by an electricity blackout that shut several refineries and a pipeline break Aug. 8 that affected a number of Western cities, particularly Phoenix.

"Both of those have been corrected," Lundberg told CNN. "All signs point to lower prices at the pump."

In the past three weeks, prices in Atlanta dropped 12 cents per gallon, to an average of $1.45 per gallon, the lowest in the country. San Francisco gas stations commanded the highest prices, at an average of $2.11 per gallon.

Here are some other prices, according to the report: New Orleans -- $1.53; Dallas, $1.56; Minneapolis, $1.66; Washington, $1.69; Salt Lake City, $1.79; Seattle, $1.87; Providence, $1.84.
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