TAMPA, Fla. - Gas prices dipped another 6 cents nationwide since last week, according to Sunday's fuel price report from AAA. The average price per gallon fell 5 cents in Florida, and 6 cents in both Georgia and Tennessee.
“Motorists should expect another week of discounts at the pump,” said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA - The Auto Club Group. “Oil prices remain especially low and gas prices are slowly catching up.”
The price of oil averaged $45.16, a decline of $1.57 from last week. The market remains over-saturated with oil, helping to keep prices down. The price of oil is forecast to remain low through the rest of the year due to shrinking demand now that the peak summer driving season is over. The U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasts the price of WTI oil to average $49 this year, and $54 in 2016.
In addition to low oil prices, the cost to produce gasoline will get even cheaper as refineries shift to winter-blend fuel. That shift is happening now, with a deadline of September 16. Winter-blend gasoline is cheaper to produce because it contains fewer additives than the summer-blend gas, which is required by the EPA to reduce air pollutants.
“Motorists are beginning to find more and more retailers selling gas below $2 a gallon in Florida, Georgia and Tennessee. It is unclear exactly how low prices will go in the coming months, but gas still has another 15 cents to fall before hitting the same low price we saw earlier this year when oil prices were this low,” said Jenkins.
