JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — After large gas demands due to Fourth of July travel, Florida prices for a gallon of regular unleaded gas have dipped 6 cents on average during the past week.
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According to AAA, Florida now has the 19th lowest gas prices nationwide. The costliest county for motorists is Palm Beach, where the average price pump is $3.56 per gallon, followed by Jefferson ($3.53) and Union ($3.52).
The average price for Florida was $3.40 a gallon on Monday. But the AAA auto club anticipates higher oil costs could result in increased prices at the pump.
“Gas demand has fallen nearly 10% since the holiday, as folks have returned to their day-to-day driving routines,” AAA spokesman Andrew Gross said in a prepared statement. “Typically, this would lower gas prices, but such a move is being countered for now by the increasing cost for oil, the main ingredient in gasoline.”
Data from the Energy Information Administration showed gas demand decreasing significantly from 9.6 million barrels per day to 8.76 million barrels per day in early July. At the same time, total domestic gasoline stocks stayed flat at 219.5 million barrels of crude oil, moving from the upper $60s per barrel into the mid-$70s.
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“If oil prices continue to rise, pump prices will likely follow suit,” an AAA news release said. While Florida’s average gas price went down over the past week, the national average increased 3 cents to $3.57 a gallon.
Florida’s average was 2 cents lower than a month ago. The West Palm Beach and Naples metro markets had the highest average prices. The lowest averages were in the Panhandle.
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