Gas prices may hit summer low after peaking
The price of gasoline leveled off last week and appears headed down, travel club AAA said.
Summertime gas prices are projected to be lowest since 2009, analysts say.
On Monday, the price of regular gas in Broward County averaged $2.81 per gallon, down a tad from Sunday and up 1 cent from a week ago. That’s less than the 3 cent rise the previous week. The price is 86 cents cheaper than a year ago.
he price of regular gas in Palm Beach County averaged $2.86 per gallon, the same as Sunday and up one cent from a week earlier. That’s less than the 2 cent rise the previous week. The price still is 86 cents cheaper than a year ago.
Nationwide, gas prices last week fell by 1 cent, off by fractions of a cent for six straight days.
“This is an encouraging sign that gas prices may have finally hit their high-point for the year,” said AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins in his weekly fuel price briefing Sunday. “The next week will be a strong indicator if prices have finally peaked. Prices should begin moving down, as long as there are no major bumps in oil prices.”
The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil averaged $59.89 per barrel last week, down 20 cents from the week before. That’s down from a peak this year of $61.43 per barrel on June 10.
Prices for oil, the main ingredient in gasoline, are under pressure partly from the strong U.S. dollar and rising concerns about a potential financial crisis in Greece, Jenkins said.
Oil prices have dropped sharply from pre-recession peaks, thanks in large part to increased U.S production based on new technologies, especially hydraulic fracturing or fracking.