Low gasoline prices married with price wars in certain small geographic areas have pushed gas below $1.30 there. The lowest price for a gallon of regular is near Columbus, Ohio, the state’s capital, at $1.23. It is no accident that several stations very close to one another have the same price.
The Speedway, United Dairy Farmers, GetGo, Kroger and Turkey Hill stations, all close to one another, are clearly fighting for customers. The $1.23 price is well below the national average of just below $1.90. The slightly wider region also has prices well below normal. Ten of the 12 locations with the lowest gas prices are in central Ohio.
That national average will go lower, probably much lower. Crude oil prices dropped to $28 a barrel and have spiked up 10% recently. However a year ago, the price was nearly $65 a barrel.
One main reason for the drop in gasoline prices is the sea of available oil, due in part to a flood from Saudi Arabia, and perhaps to falling demand as the global economy slows.
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Oil is not the only factor. Proximity to refineries is also an issue. The average gas price in Louisiana is $1.67 a gallon. In Oklahoma it is $1.57 and in Texas $1.55. All are near the huge refineries south of Houston and along the Gulf of Mexico, which is dotted by deepwater oil drilling platforms.
Gasoline taxes by state are another factor. The average nationwide is $0.48 per gallon. In Oklahoma it is $0.35. But in Ohio, the number is $0.46, evidence that Columbus is in the midst of a price war that has overwhelmed the effect of high gas taxes in Ohio.
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