More than a month after Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas, motorists are finally seeing consistent declines in gas prices.
The price dropped nearly a dime over the past week in Delaware, according to Wilmington-based AAA Mid-Atlantic.
As demand slows with the onset of fall, gas prices will continue to decrease in the coming weeks, AAA predicted. Gas prices fell to as low as $2.25 a gallon in Dover, with $2.28 prices posted in Rehoboth, Elsmere and the Kirkwood Highway-Capitol Trail area between Wilmington and Newark.
Higher crude oil prices may put a limit on gas prices moving toward $2 a gallon.
| 10/1/2017 | Week Ago | Year Ago | |
| National | $2.56 | $2.58 | $2.22 |
| Pennsylvania | $2.77 | $2.81 | $2.34 |
| Philadelphia (5-county) | $2.77 | $2.83 | $2.32 |
| South Jersey | $2.46 | $2.54 | $1.93 |
| Wilkes-Barre | $2.77 | $2.80 | $2.33 |
| Delaware | $2.37 | $2.46 | $2.15 |
| Crude Oil |
$51.67 per barrel
(Fri. 9/29/17 close) |
$50.66 per barrel
(Fri. 9/22/17 close) |
$52.36 per barrel |
At the close of NYMEX trading Friday, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil settled at $51.67 per barrel, $1.01 higher than the previous week’s closing price. Crude oil prices have been above the $50 mark for more than a week as the market reacts to a possible extension of the OPEC-led production-cut deal, as well as risks to global supplies.
Crude oil prices have been above the $50 mark for more than a week as the market reacts to a possible extension of the OPEC-led production-cut deal, as well as risks to global supplies. In addition, the U.S. Energy Information
In addition, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that domestic crude oil supplies fell for the week ended Sept. 22, after posting substantial increases in each of the last three weeks.
“Gas prices are getting cheaper by the day for Mid-Atlantic drivers,” said Jana L. Tidwell, manager of Public and Government Affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic. “With the switchover to winter-blend gasoline, consumer demand beginning to slow and Gulf Coast refineries getting closer to normal operations, consumers can expect gas prices to continue to be less expensive through October.”
Last Friday, OPEC’s Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC), charged with monitoring the agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC producers to cut global production, met in Vienna.
According to OPEC, the cartel’s strategy is working to help global crude inventories move closer to their five-year average. OPEC’s next formal meeting will be held on November 30 in Vienna, where parties that are a part of the production reduction agreement may decide to deepen and extend the current agreement beyond March 2018.
Delaware motorists can find out the price at the pump in their neighborhood from the Fuel Price Finder (http://www.AAA.com/fuelfinder).
