If you're doing a lot of driving, you're seeing real savings these days.
Gasoline prices have been falling steadily since mid-September and are now nearly at levels last seen in June.
The national average price was $3.55 per gallon on Oct. 22, according to the American Automobile Association, down from Oct. 21's $3.554. The price has fallen 8.5% from the year's peak price of $3.881 a gallon on Sept. 18.
For someone who routinely buys 15 gallons at a fill-up, the cost theoretically has dropped from $58.21 to $53.25. Still not cheap, but nearly $5 or 8.5% better.
The current AAA price is just 0.2% above AAA's $3.543 price on June 30. While it is still up 10.9% on the year, the price is also 6.7% lower than the price on Oct. 22, 2022.
Prices typically come down in the fall when driving demand falls after the summer vacation. The cooler weather also lets refiners substitute cheaper ingredients into their products.
AAA thinks prices could be falling even faster, but the conflict between Israel and Hamas has stalled the usual drop in crude-oil prices. Built into current prices is the fear that the conflict could widen with Hezbollah, the Islamist militant group based in Lebanon, and Iran getting involved.
West Texas Intermediate, the benchmark U.S. crude, settled on Oct. 20 at $88.08 a gallon, down 29 cents on the day and about 3% on the month. For the year, WTI is up about 9.7%. WTI peaked on Sept. 27 at $93.68 a barrel, a 16.7% increase for the year.
Crude oil represents 55% to 60% of the retail price of gasoline.
Gasoline remains priciest in California, where the statewide average was $5.447 a gallon on Oct. 22. The most expensive prices are in rural Mono County. Calaveras County prices are averaging $4.998.
The state with the cheapest gas remains Georgia, where the statewide average was $3.015 a gallon. The cheapest gas was in Ware County at $2.709.
Oil stocks have been buffeted by recent oil-price turmoil. Chevron (CVX) -) added 1.7% on the week but is down 7.1% on the year. ExxonMobil (XOM) -) added 1.1% and is up 0.7% on the year. Shell was up 0.5% for the week and is up 17.7% this year.
