Americans Saved $14 Billion on Gas Last Year

According to the AAA:

• Next year promises to provide much bigger savings to consumers as long as crude oil remains relatively cheap. It would not be surprising for U.S. consumers to save $50-$75 billion on gasoline in 2015 if prices remain low.
• Today’s national average price of gas is $2.26 per gallon, which is the lowest average since May 12, 2009. The national average price of gas has dropped for 97 consecutive days, which is the longest streak on record.

The AAA points out the savings are extremely uneven by state, which means some states will benefit much more economically than others. Gas prices remain above $3 in Hawaii ($3.52) and Alaska ($3.06), and above $2.70 in New York ($2.79) and Vermont ($2.71).

At the other end of the spectrum, the average price has dropped below $2 in three states: Missouri ($1.90), Oklahoma ($1.96) and Ohio ($1.99).

ALSO READ: Gas Prices Drop Below $2 in Three States

Although it is not a hard and fast rule, state gas taxes and the transportation costs of gasoline from refineries have the largest effects on gas prices after the price of oil. That is one of the reasons that the price of gas is so low in Oklahoma and so high in New York (which has the highest gas tax among all states at $0.50 a gallon.)

The prices on oil should remain down because of the equivalent of price wars between U.S. shale producers and some members of OPEC, particularly Saudi Arabia. The drop has also been triggered by near recession in Japan and some parts of Europe. The Chinese economy, the world second largest by GDP, has also slowed. The most likely causes of an increase are slowing refinery production and a decision by some states to raise gas taxes to offset, primarily, the costs of crumbling infrastructure.