Florida gas prices slip 4 cents per gallon, still at $3.30

The average cost of a gallon of gasoline in Florida dropped four cents in the past week as anticipated relief from global oil market declines began to kick in.

AAA — The Auto Club group forecast Monday pump prices will continue to fall this week in response to the sharp decline in crude oil prices two weeks ago. Still, Floridians were spending an average of $3.30 per gallon Monday, far more than at this time in any recent year.

Crude oil prices plummeted after Thanksgiving, on concerns about how the omicron variant could impact global fuel demand.

The price of U.S. crude dropped 13% after Thanksgiving and remained down all last week. Friday’s closing price of $66.26 per barrel is 15% less than the price on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It’s also 21% below the 2021 high of $84.15 per barrel, which was recorded nearly four weeks ago.

A month ago, gas cost $3.29 a gallon in Florida. A year ago, it was $2.16.

“An oil price drop of that magnitude, if sustained, could potentially drive the state average back below $3 a gallon,” AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said in a news release early Monday. “But it won’t happen overnight. Florida pump prices are falling at a rate of one-cent a day. Unless that rate accelerates, it could take a few more weeks before pump prices fully adjust.”

Nationally, gas was selling for an average of $3.36 per gallon.

Floridians were getting their best gas deals in the Crestview-Fort Walton Beach market, where the average price was $3.17 per gallon, according to AAA. In The Villages, the price was $3.19; Pensacola, $3.23; Tampa, $3.25; Jacksonville, $3.27; Orlando, $3.29; and Fort Myers and St. Petersburg, $3.30.

On the other hand, drivers in West Palm Beach-Boca Raton continue to get no breaks at the pump. The average price there was $3.48, according to AAA. In Naples, drivers paid $3.37; Fort Lauderdale, $3.35; Sarasota, $3.32; and Miami, $3.31.