Gasoline prices decrease in Ohio, locally

VW independent/submitted information

Gasoline prices in Van Wert dropped a few pennies over the week, with the Murphy USA service station in the Towne Center shopping center the lowest in the city at $2.26 per gallon, down from $2.30 a gallon last week.

The  Pak-A-Sak station on South Shannon Street and One Stop Shop station in the 200 block of North Washington Street were second at $2.30 a gallon, while three stations, the Pak-A-Sak station on North Washington, the Lassus Handy Dandy station, and the Shell station on South Washington were all at $2.31 a gallon on Sunday.

The Marathon station at the Brookside Convenience Store on West Main Street was at $2.34 per gallon, while the Short Stop on East Main Street was at $2.39 a gallon, the same as last week.

The lowest price in the area is at the Speedway station in Delphos, which is selling gas for $2.15 per gallon, as of Sunday.

Average retail gasoline prices in Ohio have fallen 8.7 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.27 per gallon on Sunday, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 5,345 gas outlets in Ohio. This compares with the national average that has fallen 5.4 cents per gallon in the last week to $2.51 per gallon, according to gasoline price website GasBuddy.com.

Including the change in gas prices in Ohio during the past week, prices Sunday were 21.4 cents per gallon higher than the same day one year ago and are 15.4 cents per gallon lower than a month ago. The national average has decreased 2.5 cents per gallon during the last month and stands 23.4 cents per gallon higher than this day one year ago.

“For the second straight week, average gasoline prices fell, with nearly every state declining week-over-week as retail gas prices saw more catching up to the previous decline in crude oil prices,” said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. “The trend may not be over just yet, but oil prices have rebounded from their lows and are again strengthening, which may cut the party at the pump short in the weeks ahead.

“Worth watching is U.S. shale oil production values, which continue to increase, which may limit oil’s rally moving forward, but dead ahead on the calendar is still turnaround season at the nation’s refiners, which promises at least some short-term pain for long-term gain.”