AAA: Florida gas prices fall 62 cents in 5 weeks

Florida gas prices dropped another 15 cents last week. The state average is now on a 5-week streak of declines, falling a total of 62 cents per gallon.

On Sunday, the average price for gasoline was $4.27 per gallon, according to AAA. This time last year, the price was $3 a gallon. On average it costs $64 to fill an average-sized 15-gallon tank of gas, $9 less than what drivers paid when gas prices hit their peak of $4.89 in mid-June.

“For the first time in a couple months, drivers in some Florida cities are beginning to find pump prices below $4 a gallon,” said Mark Jenkins, AAA spokesman.

Oil prices suffered significant drops last week, clearing the way for additional discounts at the pump. Although global supplies remain an ongoing concern, the EIA reported a steep drop in domestic gasoline demand. While this might be an anomaly, the market is taking it as an indicator that Americans could be shifting driving habits in response to high prices. Meanwhile, concerns about a new strain of COVID-19 and potential lockdowns in China have reenergized global demand concerns.

“Drivers are likely relieved to get a break from record-high prices, and prices could get even cheaper this week,” Jenkins said. “However, it’s important to remember that the market remains extremely volatile, and prices have the potential to bounce back. That particularly applies to hurricane season. If a major storm makes landfall along the gulf coast, impacting operations at refineries in Texas, Louisiana, or Mississippi, prices could spike, due to concerns about fuel supplies.”

Last week, the U.S. price of oil dropped nearly $10 a barrel but recovered a couple of dollars by the end of the week. Friday’s closing price of $97.59 per barrel is $7.20 per barrel (7%) less than the week before. That’s a far cry from where oil prices were a little more than a month ago. On June 8, the U.S. price of oil settled at a monthly high of 122.11/b. That drove the state average to a new record high of $4.89 per gallon.

As a reminder, oil prices account for about half the price of gasoline. When oil prices drop, so do gas prices.