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Gas Above $3 for the Winter

Average price up 72 cents over last year

By Joe Benton
ConsumerAffairs.com

December 7, 2007

• Why Are Oil Prices Falling? • Labor Day Gas Prices Up a Penny • Gas Prices Fall for 37 Days • Gas Prices Slide 8 Percent from Record • Gas Prices Creep Down • Oil Price Trend May Be Good News For Consumers • Gasoline Drops Below $3.90 a Gallon • Gas Prices Pull Back Slowly • Oil Prices Fall As Storm Misses Rigs • Latest Gas Price Round-Up • 'Run Your Car On Water' Scheme Could Leave Consumers All Wet • Unregulated Energy Trading Blamed for Much of Gas Price Gusher • Airlines Join Effort To Limit Oil Speculators • Questions Raised about MyGallons.com • 'Hypermiling' Is Dangerous, Says AAA • Struggling Drivers Blame Washington for High Gas Prices • What’s Really Fueling Those Sky-High Oil Prices • Credit Card Fees at the Pump are a 'Hidden Tax' on Consumers • Survey: 3 Out of 4 Angry About High Gas Prices • $2 A Gallon Gas Possible, Analysts Tell Congress • Speculators Buy More Oil Contracts Than Oil Companies • Saudis to Pump More Oil • Limiting Oil Speculators Gains Ground • Congress To Probe Oil Price Spike • Oil Market 'Saturated,' Iran Claims • Feds See No Relief from High Gas Prices • High Gas Prices Could Mean Lower Insurance Rates • High Gas Prices Good For Kia, Honda • Gas Prices Rip Past $4 and Keep Climbing • Administration, OPEC See Different Causes Of Oil Surge • Feds Probing Possible Oil Market Manipulation • Beware of Fuel Sippers Sipping High-Test • Retailers Respond to High Gas Prices with Discounts, Promotions • Rushing Into a Smaller Car Too Soon May Not Save Money • Hybrid Sales and Prices Climb in Lockstep with Gas Prices • Truckers Bemoan Burden of High Diesel Costs • Gas Prices Biting into Worker Productivity • Consumers Warned About Gas-Saving Schemes • Is Tony Soprano Controlling Gas Prices? • Oil & Gas: The New Bubble • Critics: New Federal Gas Mileage Standard Falls Short • Consumers Feeling Pain of Skyrocketing Gas Prices • New Gas Price Record Forecasts Expensive Summer Driving Season --- • More ...

Gasoline prices seem to have settled in above $3 for the winter. AAA fuel analyst Geoff Sundstrom thinks that the national average gas price "will stay about where it is now" through the end of the year, barring any significant change in the price of oil.

The national average price for regular gasoline has declined slightly but is still $3.02 a gallon.

One month ago the average price of regular gasoline was $3.04 a gallon and one year ago regular gasoline sold for $2.30 a gallon.

Mid-grade gasoline now sells for an average nation price of $3.21 and premium sells for $3.33 a gallon.

The most expensive gallon of regular gasoline is now on sale in Fairfield, California for $3.99. The cheapest gallon is found in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma for $2.49.

Here is a look at some gasoline prices from around the country in the ConsumerAffairs.com Gas Price Round Up.

California: Gasoline prices are finally falling, dropping 7 cents per gallon in California after last month's run-up.

A gallon of regular gas in California still costs $3.36, up 85 cents from this time last year. San Francisco's average is now $3.53 and in San Jose regular gasoline sells for $3.43.

"At least prices are moving in the right direction from the consumer's point of view, but it's very unclear how far prices will fall," said Sean Comey, spokesman for AAA of Northern California. "It's going to take a little while for the dust to settle here."

Never before has gas been this expensive at this time of year in California.

California climbed above $3.43 per gallon before falling back. The state's all-time record, set in May, is $3.49. The national average topped $3.10. The national record, set this spring, is $3.23.

Texas: Retail gasoline prices fell this week across Texas.

The average price of regular-grade gasoline gas fell 6 cents to $2.90 per gallon in 11 Texas cities in the AAA Texas survey.

"The drop in the gasoline price is mainly due to the sharp drop in the oil price and demand for gas appears to be flattening out this holiday season," said AAA Texas spokeswoman Rose Rougeau. "The price of crude has gone from nearly a $100 a barrel to $87 a barrel."

Fort Worth had the state's cheapest gas in the new survey, averaging $2.85 per gallon. Texarkana had the costliest gas in Texas at $2.97 per gallon.

Florida: Fond memories of $3-per-gallon gas might become reality again in the Sunshine State.

A combination of falling demand and a drop in crude oil prices is responsible for the decline in pump prices so far. They are now expected to tumble downward for several months.

Gas prices peaked in the Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice market at $3.18 on November 16 and throughout Florida at $3.16 on November 15. Those kinds of prices nationally prompted people to drive less.

A cold winter could change everything. "Refineries will be forced to increase the amount of heating oil they produce, which will diminish the amount of gas they can produce at the same time," said Gregg Laskoski, a spokesman for AAA Auto Club South.

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