Crude Oil Settles Below $80 Barrel For Fourth Time In 2011

From the East Penn Region, of AAA East Central, an affiliate of AAA and the Pennsylvania AAA Federation:

According to AAA’s Fuel Gauge Report, crude oil settled below $80 per barrel yesterday for only the fourth time in 2011, as worldwide economic woes continued to weigh on commodities and equities markets alike.

Oil futures are traded in dollars and as the currency weakens relative to those overseas, the effective price of oil for those outside of the U.S. becomes cheaper.

Oil futures become a more attractive investment and prices are pressured upward.

While crude oil prices have seen sharp price increases and decreases on a daily basis, drivers have experienced welcome relief as the national price at the pump has continued to move lower for nearly a month. 

The current national average retail price for a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline is $3.408 down 25.4 cents from last month.

In Pennsylvania, today’s average price of self-serve gasoline is $3.470 down 17.1 cents from a month ago and 78.3 cents higher than a year ago.

In the Lehigh Valley, the average price for self- serve regular unleaded gasoline is $3.442 per gallon. That is 13.9 cents higher than a month ago and 79.4 cents higher than a year ago.

In the Philadelphia market, the average price for self-serve regular unleaded gasoline is $3.517 per gallon. That is 16.8 cents lower than a month ago and 82.8 cents higher than a year ago.