The New York Times reports that the price of gasoline is at its lowest level in three years thanks to a tentative reduction in Middle East tensions and growing supplies of domestic oil. Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst at GasBuddy, said that “The majority of the population will be able to find gasoline for less than $3 a gallon between now and New Year’s.” These price drops could be limited by Saudi Arabia, which may cut production to slow the drop in prices. But the price drops can also be attributed to the fact that North American crude prices are disconnected from world crude prices due to increases in domestic oil production. The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.21 on Friday, 14 cents below a month ago and 25 cents below last year, according to AAA’s daily fuel gauge report.
Drivers in all 50 states are enjoying lower gas prices than a year ago, and Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas filling stations are now charging $3 or less a gallon on average. The AAA automobile club predicts that the national average will dip to as low as $3.10 a gallon for regular by the end of the year, and some analysts see even more declines.