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Gasoline Prices Drop to $2.92 a Gallon
WASHINGTON (Aug. 22) - Good news for drivers: Gasoline prices likely have peaked for the year as oil costs have backed off record highs and the busy summer driving season comes to a close.
A number of analysts, including those at Moody's Economy .com, Wachovia and Global Insight, say gasoline prices likely will continue to decline in coming weeks. But they warn that a number of factors could toss out that forecast and send oil and gasoline prices higher.
"Unless you get another Katrina-Rita (hurricane) kind of event, odds are we've probably seen the worst of it," Bill O'Grady of A.G. Edwards says.
The average U.S. price of a gallon of regular gasoline fell for the 11th consecutive day Monday, motor club AAA and the Oil Price Information Service said. The average price was $2.929, 11 cents lower than the recent peak on Aug. 8.
In a separate, weekly report, the Energy Department said the nationwide average price was $2.924 Monday, down 7.6 cents from a week ago. That was the biggest one-week drop in nine months and the lowest price in two months.
But drivers aren't completely in the clear.
The hurricane season does not end until Nov. 30. A bad hurricane, like Katrina last year, could damage production and refining facilities, leading to lower supply and higher prices.
Further, tensions with Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, are building regarding that country's nuclear program. Although the United States does not import oil from Iran, there is concern that if sanctions were imposed on that nation, there would be less oil on the world market.
"It's too early to call the top in gasoline prices," Briefing .com's Kimberly DuBord says.
08/21/06 16:39 EDT
WASHINGTON (Aug. 22) - Good news for drivers: Gasoline prices likely have peaked for the year as oil costs have backed off record highs and the busy summer driving season comes to a close.
A number of analysts, including those at Moody's Economy .com, Wachovia and Global Insight, say gasoline prices likely will continue to decline in coming weeks. But they warn that a number of factors could toss out that forecast and send oil and gasoline prices higher.
"Unless you get another Katrina-Rita (hurricane) kind of event, odds are we've probably seen the worst of it," Bill O'Grady of A.G. Edwards says.
The average U.S. price of a gallon of regular gasoline fell for the 11th consecutive day Monday, motor club AAA and the Oil Price Information Service said. The average price was $2.929, 11 cents lower than the recent peak on Aug. 8.
In a separate, weekly report, the Energy Department said the nationwide average price was $2.924 Monday, down 7.6 cents from a week ago. That was the biggest one-week drop in nine months and the lowest price in two months.
But drivers aren't completely in the clear.
The hurricane season does not end until Nov. 30. A bad hurricane, like Katrina last year, could damage production and refining facilities, leading to lower supply and higher prices.
Further, tensions with Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, are building regarding that country's nuclear program. Although the United States does not import oil from Iran, there is concern that if sanctions were imposed on that nation, there would be less oil on the world market.
"It's too early to call the top in gasoline prices," Briefing .com's Kimberly DuBord says.
08/21/06 16:39 EDT