Average gas price drops below $5 per gallon in Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties

SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Orange County dropped below $5 for the first time since March 3 Tuesday, decreasing 4.4 cents to $4.959.

The Orange County average price has dropped for 18 consecutive days and 49 times in 55 days since rising to a record $6.357 on Oct. 5, falling $1.398, including nine-tenths of a cent Monday, according to figures from the AAA and the Oil Price Information Service.

The Orange County average price is 18.6 cents less than one week ago and 55.9 cents lower than one month ago, but 27.4 cents more than one year ago.

In San Bernardino County on Tuesday, the average price point stood at $4.98 while in Riverside County it was $4.93.

The Los Angeles County average price dropped for the 19th consecutive day, decreasing 4 cents to $5.074, its lowest amount since March 3. It has decreased 52 times in the 55 days since rising to a record $6.494 on Oct. 5, falling $1.42, including 1.7 cents Monday.

In some areas, the cost of a gallon of regular gasoline is well under $5, but during a protest outside of the Phillips 66 refinery in Wilmington, some people called out big oil companies over alleged "price gouging" and reported record-high profits.

The Los Angeles County average price is 18 cents less than one week ago and 57 cents lower than one month ago, but 36.3 cents more than one year ago.

The national average price dropped for the 20th consecutive day, decreasing 2.5 cents to $3.521. It is 11.5 cents less than one week ago and 24 cents lower than one month ago, but 12.7 cents more than one year ago.

The national average price has dropped 28.4 cents over the past 20 days, including nine-tenths of a cent Monday. It is $1.495 lower than the record $5.016 set June 14.

"As millions of Americans hit the road for Thanksgiving, we saw gasoline prices continue dropping coast to coast last week, and a new record was set for the largest single day decline in the national average," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, which provides real- time gas price information from more than 150,000 stations.

"All the metrics look very positive for motorists as this week is likely to continue seeing falling gasoline prices, with many areas falling to the lowest level since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February."

City News Service contributed to this report.