AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Austin-area gas prices fell this week to their lowest point since mid-October, according to AAA Texas' Weekend Gas Watch.
The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded fuel across the Austin-San Marcos metro area this week is $2.88 a gallon, down six cents from last week and $1.04 higher than this time a year ago.
Across the state, Texas drivers are paying an average of $2.93 a gallon, down four cents from last week and $1.07 higher than this time last year. Nationally, the average is down four cents this week to $3.34, which is $1.18 higher than this time last year.
Of the major metropolitan areas surveyed in Texas, drivers in El Paso are paying the most on average at $3.11 per gallon while drivers in Amarillo are paying the least at $2.74 per gallon.
According to the latest data from the Energy Information Administration for the week ending December 3, the U.S. gasoline demand number increased slightly week-to-week by around two percent and remains elevated from this time last year. However, concerns of a possible COVID-19 global economic slowdown pushed oil prices into the mid-$60s per barrel last week —a price not seen since August. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude has since rebounded to above $70 per barrel. Also helping to ease upward pricing pressure was the decision by OPEC and its oil-producing allies not to cut production.
“Prices at the pump have been falling as crude oil prices have been fluctuating due to concerns over the COVID-19 Omicron variant,” said AAA Texas spokesperson Daniel Armbruster. “On December 2, OPEC+ announced it would stick to its plan, for now, to raise production by 400,000 barrels per day in January, which has also helped keep a lid on oil prices.”
