A dramatic drop in oil prices over the past several weeks is fueling a price decline at the pump. Gas prices neared a four-year high in October, briefly topping $2.90 per gallon, but have since retreated, The Daily Advertiser reports.
Ample global supplies of petroleum, which is refined into gasoline, have played a key role in delivering savings for consumers.
“Thanksgiving gas prices are getting carved up at a time of year when we’re all used to getting the turkey ready,” said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst at fuel-finding app GasBuddy. “This is a fairly dramatic turnaround.”
The national average was $2.68 per gallon on Wednesday, down 7 cents from a week earlier and 22 cents from a month earlier, according to AAA. Prices are still up 12 cents from a year ago.
Several dozen stations across Louisiana, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma and Texas were charging less than $2 per gallon as of Wednesday, according to GasBuddy.
That number “could be several hundred by Thanksgiving Day,” GasBuddy’s DeHaan said.
More than 54 million Americans are expected to travel at least 50 miles for Thanksgiving, according to AAA. That’s up 4.8% from 2017 and marks a 13-year high.
