Gasoline prices—now well below an average of $3 per gallon nationally—and crude oil costs have plunged to their lowest levels since the pandemic in early 2021, coming just in time for the holiday travel season that’s projected to set new records in the U.S.
A combination of surging oil production volumes from OPEC and the U.S. is putting downward pressure on fuel prices just as seasonally lower gasoline costs are setting in. (Fuel is cheaper to refine in the winter.) At the same time, a record 122.4 million Americans are projected to travel at least 50 miles beginning Dec. 20, including 109.5 million electing to drive, according to AAA.
“We are looking at prices not seen since about March 2021, almost five years ago. That’s certainly great news for motorists,” GasBuddy petroleum analyst Matt McClain told Fortune. “That’s delivering a weekly savings of nearly $400 million [nationwide] compared to just this time last year when prices were 12.3 cents higher per gallon.
“And we are expecting prices to continue falling,” he continued.
The national average price of gasoline for a gallon of regular unleaded dipped 4.5 cents in the past week, now averaging $2.85, according to GasBuddy, after falling below the $3 per gallon threshold in early December for the first time in over four years. The national average is down 22 cents per gallon in just one month.
