Friday, October 17, 2014
By Kalea Hall
YOUNGSTOWN
Just a few weeks ago, Ike Omran priced his gas at $2.99 a gallon for regular because he was celebrating his 15th anniversary at Fast Fuel on Youngstown-Poland Road.
On Thursday, Omran priced his gas at $2.89 for a variety of reasons, but primarily because of the decreased cost for crude oil.
“We are actually making a little money, too,” he said. “The price goes down and we go down. That is what happens.”
Orman was not alone in the $2.89 trend. Gateway Gas and Food on Market Street was reported by AAA East Central to have a price of $2.89, and so did Big Apple Supermarket on McGuffey Road, Kwik Fill on Youngstown-Poland Road in Struthers and Morgan Oil on Lowellville Road in Struthers.
AAA Central reported the area average at $3.07, while it was about $3.13 last week for regular gas.
The nation’s average was reported at $3.16, and the state’s was at $3.13.
“We are seeing that the gas prices are falling around the country,” said Bevi Powell, senior vice president for AAA East Central.
In Warren, the average Thursday was $3.07, and in Akron the average was at $3.16.
Gas prices do tend to fall in the autumn and winter months because this blend of gasoline is considered the winter gas, which is cheaper, said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for Gasbuddy.com.
In addition, in the past couple of weeks, the cost for crude oil has dropped amid competition between suppliers.
Although some gas stations have lowered the cost to pay at the pump, not all have dropped to that price.
“The odds are they are buying their oil from someone else,” DeHaan said.
But that is just one of a list of reasons people pay various prices at various pumps. Other factors could include the competition within the given area, where the gas comes from, where the refinery is located, and where the station is located.
“It is tremendously complex,” DeHaan said.
Analysts expect gas prices to remain relatively low over the next few weeks.