The average price has dropped 6.4 cents over the past three days, including 3.3 cents Friday, its largest daily decrease since Aug. 6, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service.
The average price is 1.9 cents less than one week ago but $1.088 more than one month ago and $1.995 higher than one year ago mainly due to a 33-day streak of increases totaling $1.248 that ended Thursday with a decrease of three-tenths of a cent.
The Orange County average price recorded its largest decrease since July 14, dropping 4.1 cents to $6.358. It is 7.1 cents less than one week ago but $1.068 more than one month ago and $1.954 more than one year ago.
The Orange County average price has also dropped three consecutive days since rising to a record, decreasing 10.1 cents, including 3.7 cents Friday, following a run of 15 increases in 16 days totaling $1.063.
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"We're starting to see pump prices move lower because refineries that were undergoing maintenance are coming back online, winter-blend fuel, which is cheaper to produce, will enter the market sooner than Nov. 1 and multiple cargoes carrying gasoline products are on their way to California in the coming weeks," Doug Shupe, the Automobile Club of Southern California's corporate communications manager, told City News Service.
"All of these factors will put downward pressure on prices at the pump, but we don't know how much prices will fall or how fast they will fall."
The national average price rose for the 17th time in 18 days, increasing 1.3 cents to $3.904. The average price has increased 23 cents over the past 18 days, including 2.4 cents Friday. It rose for 11 consecutive days, dropped four-tenths of a cent Sunday and resumed increasing Monday.
The national average price is 10.4 cents more than one week ago, 15.3 cents higher than one month ago and 64.4 cents greater than one year ago.
The national average price is $1.112 less than the record $5.016 set June 14.
The run of increases follows a 98-day streak of decreases totaling $1.342 that began the day after the record was set.
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