Fuel Price Brief for the Week of January 30

FUEL PRICE BRIEF CONTACT: Jessica Brady, manager, AAA Public Relations, (813) 288-7294 office, (813) 532-5327 cell, JBrady@AAASouth.com

 NO MOVEMENT IN OIL PRICES GOOD NEWS FOR CONSUMERS

TAMPA, Fla. (January 30, 2011) — Retail gasoline prices decreased for the first time last week since November 24, albeit a minimal decrease of 1 cent. The price drop continues into this week as the national average price for gas decreased another 2 cents from last week. However, the price of crude oil increased slightly to settle Friday at $89.34 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange—an increase of 23 cents from last week.

Oil demand has showed no significant increases and according to the International Energy Agency, oil supplies and reserves are plentiful in the U.S. and other developed countries. But, the stable prices are uncertain in the future as unrest in Egypt has investors worried it could spill into Saudi Arabia and affect oil production. If protests in Egypt continue or worsen, the Suez Canal may be closed, which connects the Mediterranean and Red Seas, moving more than one million barrels of oil a day.

"While Egypt isn’t a major player in the oil market, Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter and if oil production is affected we can expect oil prices to rise," said Jessica Brady, spokesperson, AAA Auto Club South. "While there is no immediate disturbance, the protests in Egypt will be closely watched. As for retail gas prices, they are expected to remain relatively unchanged despite the 23-cent increase in crude prices."

The national average price of unleaded regular gasoline is $3.09 per gallon, down  2 cents from last week. Florida’s average price of $3.11 and Georgia’s average price $2.99 both decreased 2 cents from last week. Tennessee’s average price of $2.93 decreased 4 cents from last week, respectively.  

CURRENT AND PAST PRICE AVERAGES

Regular Unleaded Gasoline

                                    Current           Week Ago      Month Ago     Year Ago     

National:                    $3.099          $3.113               $3.072              $2.678

Florida:                      $3.112          $3.145              $3.094              $2.726

 Georgia:                     $2.990          $3.025              $2.991              $2.566

 Tennessee:               $2.939         $2.972                $2.934              $2.578

AAA’s Daily Fuel Gauge Report (fuelgaugereport.com) is updated each day and is the most comprehensive; reflecting actual prices from credit card transactions within the past 24 hours at two-thirds (100,000 stations) of the gasoline stations in the U.S. Its accuracy is unparalleled.

Next Fuel Price Brief:  Sunday, February 6, 2011