While those investing in the stock market might be a bit nervous by last’s week plunge in the markets, American drivers are reaping the benefits.
The price of a barrel of crude oil dropped to below $30 for the first time in more than a decade yesterday. The dramatic drop in oil has led to the lowest gas prices in America in nearly a decade.
The average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas has dropped to $1.90 according to Gas Buddy, and the trend suggests prices will continue dropping. In parts of Oklahoma, the price of gas has dropped below $1.50 a gallon.
Per Gas Buddy, the price of gas has been cut in half from just 18 months ago, when the average price was $3.70 a gallon. The drop in prices coincides with the price of crude oil.
In the summer of 2014, the price of a barrel of crude oil was $100. By the holidays, the price was less than $50. By the end of 2014, gas dropped to $2.03 a gallon. For much of 2015, oil prices hovered around $50 per barrel, and gas prices hovered at $2.50 a gallon nationally, but oil has significantly declined in the last few months.
Yesterday’s closing price of $29.42 for oil was the lowest since 2004.
AAA has also calculated, and its calculations show gas has decreased from $1.98 nationally a week ago to $1.91 on Saturday.
At the beginning of 2016, AAA reported prices in the new year would likely remain low through the rest of the year.
“There currently is a glut of crude oil around the world that has grown faster than demand, and that situation is unlikely to change significantly as Iranian oil enters the marketplace and because the global economy is growing at a relatively weak pace,” AAA’s Michael Green said.
