AAA: October falling into lower gas prices

The national gas price average is $2.85. That is six-cents cheaper than this month’s highest price of $2.91, which was the most expensive average during the month of October since 2014. Today’s price is also four cents cheaper than last week, the same price as last month and 39- cent more than this time last year.

Reduced refinery runs, due to peak maintenance season, have contributed to stable gasoline inventories amid lower demand, which is a contributing factor driving gas prices down.

“Motorists across the country are seeing gas prices more than a dime cheaper than last week, with 41 states having less expensive state averages on the week,” said Tammy Arnette, AAA spokesperson. “Prices are falling despite market concerns about global supply and geopolitical tensions, but that could change later this month ahead of the U.S. announcement of imposed sanctions on Iran.”

On the week, pump prices are as much as a dime cheaper across Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states. Delaware (-10 cents) and Maryland (-7 cents) saw the largest declines of all states in the region, landing on the top 10 list of states with the largest weekly change.

With the large decline in Delaware ($2.56), the state’s average ranks as the cheapest in the country, a rare occurrence for the state. It is the cheapest in the region followed by Virginia ($2.63) and Tennessee ($2.64).

With a draw of 602,000 bbl, gasoline inventories in the region register right at the 70 million bbl mark, according to EIA data. The small drop is helping to drive gas prices down. Notably,  at 70 million bbl, the region is sitting on a 12.1 million bbl year-over-year surplus underscoring the nation’s high gasoline production rates this year.