Gas price drops below $2 in Mo.

Gas price drops below $2 in Mo.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.

Missouri became the first state Friday to have an average statewide gas price fall below $2 per gallon since 2009, while Oklahoma’s average was expected to drop below that threshold sometime over the weekend, according to AAA.

The national average gas price was at $2.32 per gallon Friday, which AAA spokesman Michael Green said was the lowest since May 2009. That average has dropped for 92 days in a row, he said, which is the longest streak since AAA started keeping daily records in January 2000.

Gas prices have fallen every day since Sept. 25, for a total of $1.02 per gallon, Green said.

“The steady decline in gas prices this autumn is unlike anything we have previously tracked,” he said.

Missouri’s average on Friday morning was $1.98, according to AAA. Oklahoma had the second-lowest average at $2.01 and “is likely to drop below that price point this weekend,” Green said.

Stocks extend gains for the week

Wall Street’s “Santa Claus” rally kept delivering gifts a day after Christmas.

The Dow Jones industrial average, Standard & Poor’s 500 index and the Russell 2000 index of small-company stocks closed at all-time highs Friday.

The modest pickup in stocks, which gave the Dow its seventh-consecutive gain, came on a day of relatively light trading after the holiday break for U.S. markets.

Utilities stocks were among the biggest gainers.

Oil prices continued to decline. That made traders hopeful for stronger consumer spending heading into next year, since drivers won’t need to pay as much to fill up their cars.

“Holiday sales look good. The consumer is in good shape,” said David Chalupnik, head of equities at Nuveen Asset Management. “We’re ending the year strong, and my guess is the market continues to trend higher through year-end, and January is probably going to be a good month as well.”

The Dow gained 23.50 points to close at 18,053.71. That’s up 0.1 percent from its previous record high Wednesday.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 6.89 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,088.77. That’s up 0.3 percent from the S&P 500’s most-recent all-time high recorded Tuesday.

The Nasdaq composite rose 33.39 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4,806.86. The last time the index was higher was March 28, 2000, during the heady days of the dot-com bubble.

Wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .61, 26.820.09

Avalon Holdings,2.68-0.16

Clear Channel, .46 18.90-0.27

Cortland Bancorp, 15.750

Farmers Nat., .128.270.01

First Energy, 1.44, 39.990.25

Fifth/Third, .5220.610.02

FirstMerit Corp., .64,18.940

First Niles Financial, .32,9.400

FNB Corp., .48,13.230.01

General Motors, 1.2033.790.36

General Electric, .88,25.75-0.08

Huntington Bank, .20, 10.580.02

JP Morgan Chase, 1.60,62.630.15

Key Corp, .26,14.020.01

LaFarge, 17.84-0.02

Macy’s, 1.25, 64.06-0.2

Parker Hannifin, 1.92, 130.860.01

PNC, 1.92,92.57-0.01

RTI Intl. Metals,24.880.16

Simon Prop. Grp.,5.20,184.75-0.37

Stoneridge 12.660.24

Talmer Bank, 14.240.08

United Comm. Fin., .04 5.470.04

Selected prices at 4 p.m. Friday. Provided by Stifel. Not to be construed as an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security.