Gas Prices Continue Drop

CAMARILLO, Calif.The price of gasoline fell 4.5 cents in the past two weeks because of weak demand and the plunging cost of crude oil.Some regions of the country are seeing buck-a-gallon gas for the first time in months, analyst Trilby Lundberg said. The lowest price in the nation for a gallon of regular grade was 97 cents in Atlanta, and the highest was $1.82 in Honolulu. The average retail price of gasoline, including all grades and taxes, was about $1.23 per gallon on Friday, according to the two-week Lundberg Survey of nearly 8,000 stations nationwide.The price of gasoline has fallen 32.2 cents since Sept. 7, shortly before the terrorist attacks that further slowed the nation's economy. Prices are the lowest for this timeof year since 1998 and show no sign of rising through the end of the year, Lundberg said.The national weighted average price of gasoline, including taxes, at self-service pumps Friday was about $1.20 for regular unleaded, $1.30 for midgrade and $1.39 for premium.Demand is typically weak during early November, and uncertainty about the economy has further depressed the nation's thirst for gasoline, jet fuel and other oil products,Lundberg said. But the ongoing drop in crude oil prices is the main reason pump prices continue to slide. "As crude oil is down about a nickel per gallon equivalent since Nov. 2 so is the price of gasoline," Lundberg said.