Survey: Gas Prices Fall to $2.42 a Gallon
According to the Lundberg Survey, average U.S. retail gasoline prices have continued to fall, as crude oil has dropped more than $5 per barrel Reuters reported.
The national average price for self-service regular gas was $2.42 a gallon on Sept. 22, a drop of more than 23.5 cents per gallon since two weeks ago. The survey tracked prices of more than 7,000 stations across the nation over the two-week span.
This two-week trend almost matches the 25 cent drop in October that followed Hurricane Rita, Reuters said. In the past six weeks, gas prices have dropped more than 60 cents per gallon.
According to Trilby Lundberg, editor for the survey, the price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil near-month futures contract closed at $60.55 on Sept. 22, down $5.70 per barrel from the last Lundberg survey on Sept. 8.
"Thus, lower oil prices accounted for at least half of the recent crash in the retail gasoline market," she told Reuters. "Any further gasoline price cuts are likely to be much smaller," Lundberg added. "Most of the downward retail gasoline price correction is complete."
Besides the closing of the summer driving season, Lundberg mentioned other factors that have affected the dip in gas prices, including weak consumer demand from months of high gas prices and the seasonal shift to winter gasoline formulas.
The current average price for gasoline is 38.31 cents per gallon lower than its year-ago level, according to the survey. Among cities surveyed, the lowest average self-serve regular was $2.07 in Des Moines, Iowa and the highest was $3.03 in Honolulu.
The national average price for self-service regular gas was $2.42 a gallon on Sept. 22, a drop of more than 23.5 cents per gallon since two weeks ago. The survey tracked prices of more than 7,000 stations across the nation over the two-week span.
This two-week trend almost matches the 25 cent drop in October that followed Hurricane Rita, Reuters said. In the past six weeks, gas prices have dropped more than 60 cents per gallon.
According to Trilby Lundberg, editor for the survey, the price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil near-month futures contract closed at $60.55 on Sept. 22, down $5.70 per barrel from the last Lundberg survey on Sept. 8.
"Thus, lower oil prices accounted for at least half of the recent crash in the retail gasoline market," she told Reuters. "Any further gasoline price cuts are likely to be much smaller," Lundberg added. "Most of the downward retail gasoline price correction is complete."
Besides the closing of the summer driving season, Lundberg mentioned other factors that have affected the dip in gas prices, including weak consumer demand from months of high gas prices and the seasonal shift to winter gasoline formulas.
The current average price for gasoline is 38.31 cents per gallon lower than its year-ago level, according to the survey. Among cities surveyed, the lowest average self-serve regular was $2.07 in Des Moines, Iowa and the highest was $3.03 in Honolulu.