Gas Prices Dip After Record Two Weeks
WASHINGTON -- The average retail price for gasoline in the country fell nearly a penny after spiking to record highs for the past two weeks, according to the most recent weekly government survey cited by Reuters.
The national price for regular unleaded gasoline dropped 0.09 cents over the last week to $3.21 a gallon, which is still 34 cents more than a year ago, according to the federal Energy Information Administration's (EIA) survey of gas retailers nationwide.
The EIA did not expect gasoline prices to start falling until sometime in June, the report stated. The slide follows a rise in U.S. gasoline inventories from oil refineries restarting while gasoline imports also remain strong, the report stated.
Concerns over gasoline supplies eased earlier in the week on the New York Mercantile Exchange, where gasoline for June delivery dropped almost 10.6 cents, or 4.4 percent, to settle near $2.30 a gallon, Reuters reported.
Gasoline was the most expensive on the West Coast, where it fell 0.023 cents to $3.35. Meanwhile, Chicago saw the highest pump price at $3.62 a gallon, up 8.9 cents. The Gulf Coast region had the lowest price at $3.07 a gallon, down 0.025 cents. Houston had the cheapest pump price at $3 a gallon, up 0.019 cents, according to the report.
However, don't expect the prices to continue dropping. The EIA warned that gasoline prices could rise again this summer, especially if a major hurricane hits the Gulf Coast and disrupts supplies similar to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in late 2005.
The national price for regular unleaded gasoline dropped 0.09 cents over the last week to $3.21 a gallon, which is still 34 cents more than a year ago, according to the federal Energy Information Administration's (EIA) survey of gas retailers nationwide.
The EIA did not expect gasoline prices to start falling until sometime in June, the report stated. The slide follows a rise in U.S. gasoline inventories from oil refineries restarting while gasoline imports also remain strong, the report stated.
Concerns over gasoline supplies eased earlier in the week on the New York Mercantile Exchange, where gasoline for June delivery dropped almost 10.6 cents, or 4.4 percent, to settle near $2.30 a gallon, Reuters reported.
Gasoline was the most expensive on the West Coast, where it fell 0.023 cents to $3.35. Meanwhile, Chicago saw the highest pump price at $3.62 a gallon, up 8.9 cents. The Gulf Coast region had the lowest price at $3.07 a gallon, down 0.025 cents. Houston had the cheapest pump price at $3 a gallon, up 0.019 cents, according to the report.
However, don't expect the prices to continue dropping. The EIA warned that gasoline prices could rise again this summer, especially if a major hurricane hits the Gulf Coast and disrupts supplies similar to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in late 2005.