Nine cent drop in NEO gas prices

Northeast Ohio motorists will be paying nine cents less per gallon this week at the pump.

The Northeast Ohio average price for a gallon of self-serve, regular unleaded gasoline is $2.677. The national average price is $2.724 per gallon, down 3.1 cents from last week.

According to AAA’s Fuel Gauge, crude prices ended the today slightly down after being unable to sustain earlier gains. After reaching almost $74, prices on the NYMEX closed at $71.95, down 11 cents from the opening.

The price of crude oil continues to closely follow the direction of the stock market indices, which received a boost today on news that the U.S. nonmanufacturing sector continues to grow, although at a very slow rate.