Gas drops two cents in region, less than penny in Washington
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The mini-roller coaster ride of gasoline prices continues in Western Pennsylvania.
A gallon of unleaded self-serve dipped 2.0 cents this week, from $2.805 to $2.785, AAA East Central reported Monday afternoon. This followed a 1.3-cent bump last week, which was preceded by a slight rise.
The latest regional average is 15.8 cents cheaper than it was a year ago, at $2.943.
For the second week in a row, Washington’s figure barely inched downward – two-tenths of a cent, from $2.695 to $2.693. That remains the fifth-lowest price among 22 Western Pennsylvania cities and towns monitored by AAA. Washington’s figure has dropped 27.9 cents over the past 13 weeks.
Sharon, for the third consecutive week, has the lowest average price: $2.562. New Castle ($2.620), Altoona ($2.656) and Butler ($2.685) rank second through fourth for a second straight week. Uniontown ($2.841) is 15th.
Bradford ($2.949) has the most expensive fuel, Warren ($2.939) the second priciest.
Prices in states in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast region, which includes Pennsylvania, rose minimally or stayed the same. Delaware (six cents) and Maryland (four cents) experienced the largest regional increases this week.
Gasoline stocks were mostly stable over the week, sitting at 59.3 million barrels, according to the Energy Information Administration. The rate of regional refinery use likewise held steady, at 90%, which helped to contain pump prices.
The national average bumped up a penny to $2.61, as weeks of unseasonably high demand was followed by a more typical autumnal decline. But despite the lower demand, national stocks fell by 2.8 million barrels, due partly to high exports.
A mere six states have higher averages than a year ago, led by California (a 34-cent jump), Delaware (12 cents), Nevada (11 cents) and Ohio (eight cents).