San Diego County average gas price drops for 54th time in 57 Days

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - The average price of a gallon of self-serve gasoline in San Diego County dropped today for the 54th time in 57 days, decreasing two-tenths of a cent to $2.787, its lowest amount since Dec. 30, 2016.

The average price is 1.8 cents less than a week ago, 28.4 cents lower than a month ago and $1.302 below what it was one year ago, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. It has fallen 81.5 cents since the start of the year, including three-tenths of a cent on Thursday.

The average price fell 44 consecutive days, rose three-tenths of a cent on April 19, dropped each of the next five days, then rose three-tenths of a cent on Saturday and one-tenth of a cent on Sunday, the first back-to-back daily increases since Feb. 27-28. It has also dropped each of the past five days.

The average price has decreased 74.6 cents over the past 57 days.

"The Energy Information Administration noted that gasoline inventories dropped by a significant 3.7 million gallons in the past week,

which means there is more driving occurring than in prior weeks,'' said Jeffrey Spring, the Automobile Club of Southern California's corporate communications manager.

"Prices are still declining, but if demand continues at this higher pace, we may be nearing the bottom of the price curve.''

The dropping prices are the result of a sharp decrease in demand as people reduced driving because of stay-at-home orders and higher unemployment stemming from the coronavirus outbreak, which caused gasoline inventories to increase, according to Spring.

The sharp drop in oil prices caused by a decrease in demand connected to the global economic downturn, a price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia and fears of global crude storage hitting capacity are additional reasons for the lower gas prices.

The crude oil price and supply and demand are the most important factors in the gas price.