Drew Dixon
Florida gasoline prices leveled off in the past week, after consistently dropping over the past nearly one month, according to AAA Florida Auto Club data released Monday.
The average price for a gallon of gas in the Sunshine State dropped about 1 cent last week landing at $2.84 per gallon. It’s not much of a drop, but it’s the third straight week that gas prices have fallen in Florida. It also reverses the trend for much of 2021 that saw gas prices increasing for most of this year.
The highest price for a gallon of gas reached $2.91 this year on March 21. Floridians are still paying more than this time last year when the average was $2.56 per gallon as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the state.
Still, the current price is more than at the same point in 2019 when it was $2.80 per gallon. The last time April gas prices were higher than the current price was in 2018, when gas rung up at $2.92 per gallon.
AAA Florida officials say the downward trend on gas prices may be coming to an end as motorists in the state are preparing to drive more for vacations as more people are getting vaccinated for COVID-19.
“The downward trend at the pump appears to have stalled out for now,” said Mark Jenkins, Florida AAA spokesman. “It’s possible that strong springtime gasoline demand is helping to keep a floor on falling prices.
“However, current fundamentals point toward additional declines in the near future. Retail prices have not fully adjusted to recent drops in the wholesale price of gasoline. Meanwhile, market speculators remain worried about global demand, amid reports of lockdowns in Europe and surging cases of COVID-19 in Brazil and India,” Jenkins said.
West Palm Beach recorded the most expensive gasoline in the state in the past week at $2.97 per gallon followed by Tallahassee and Miami at $2.90.
Punta Gorda had the least expensive gas at $2.73 per gallon followed by The Villages at $2.77 and Ocala at $2.79.
Florida’s average gas price is still lower than the national average at $2.86.
