(WTWO/WAWV) — Gas prices in the state of Indiana have fallen by 16.4 cents in the last week, coming to an average of $3.43 according to research by gas price report company GasBuddy.
That has the average cost for a gallon of regular grade fuel now at 28.4 cents lower than last month, and 78.7 cents lower than a year ago.
The national average currently sits at $3.65, with Illinois currently sitting at one cent higher with an average of $3.66. This comes as news of conflict in Israel has some worried of a price hike in the near future.
“At long last, the decline in gas prices that we’ve been waiting to see has arrived, and the locomotive of falling prices has only recently started on a downhill, gaining momentum,” head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy Patrick De Haan said. “However, some new caution signs have emerged with the recent attacks on Israel, potentially destabilizing a sensitive region. I’m hopeful the violence won’t spread, limiting the impact to these falling gas prices. Even with oil prices rising as a reaction to the attacks, I remain optimistic the national average could decline another 25-45 cents by late November, with prices falling potentially nearly triple that in California.”
Prices by County
Taking a look at AAA’s gas price tracker shows that on the Indiana side of the Wabash Valley, Sullivan County ranks as having the best prices for gasoline at an average of $3.33.
The highest cost in the viewing area on the Indiana side belongs to Clay County which is reporting an average of $3.57 per gallon.
On the Illinois side, while the statewide average is higher than the national average, locally, prices are much closer to the average cost in Indiana, if not better.
AAA reports that Richland County has the best prices in the area with an average of just $3.27 per gallon. Neighboring Lawrence County showed the highest in the WTWO viewing area at $3.48.
“Even the price of diesel has seen downward pressure with oil prices plummeting last week on fears that the Fed will be forced to continue raising rates, eating into demand growth, leading a barrel of crude to drop into the mid-$80s,” De Haan said. “But we remain concerned about a potentially destabilized Middle East and the potential impact to oil prices should the region see violence escalate.”
