HOUSTON — It’s good news for everyone struggling to deal with inflation – gas prices are falling. Nationwide the prices are down for 48 straight days with the Texas reporting the lowest average price.
Experts say a big part of the plummet is simply supply and demand. When the cost of gas spiked earlier this summer people cut back on driving.
According to NPR, gas consumption is down about 9 percent in the U.S. compared to a year ago. This came as supply increased more than 6 percent – a recipe for lower prices.
It also helps that the price of crude oil is going down. The price of oil makes up about 55 percent of what you pay at the pump.
The price of West Texas crude dropped below $90 a barrel this week for the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
So how low will they go? Experts are torn on this one. If gas prices follow traditional trends they will continue to fall as we head into fall. That’s because normally when summer vacation ends so do the road trips.
But experts are wondering if Americans tired of being stuck at home because of high gas prices might hit the road as they fall below $4 a gallon.