New 2023 low: More than half of Florida gas stations have fuel prices less than $3 per gallon

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Just in time for the holidays, Florida gas prices have fallen to a new 2023 low, according to AAA — The Auto Club Group.

Monday’s average price of less than $3.04 per gallon is about 15 cents less than a week ago. It’s the lowest daily average since late December 2022.

It’s also 37 cents less the price point motorists saw last Thanksgiving ($3.41).

A major contributor to the drop is the plummeting price of crude oil, which fell from $93 a barrel in late September to $72 last week. During that stretch, the state average price per gallon of gas declined 65 cents.

“More than half of Florida gas stations now have gasoline priced below $3 a gallon,” AAA spokesperson Mark Jenkins said in a statement. “While there could be some fluctuations in the coming weeks, AAA expects gas prices to remain low through the holidays, unless oil prices suddenly spike.”

The most expensive metropolitan market for Florida drivers and motorcyclists is again the West Palm Beach-Boca Raton area, where gas stations are charging $3.28 per gallon on average.

Naples ($3.19) and Tallahassee ($3.17) are the second- and third-most expensive, respectively.

The cheapest fuel is in Pensacola, where the average is $2.88 per gallon, followed by Crestview-Fort Walton Beach ($2.90) and Panama City ($2.98).

More than 3 million Floridians are planning trips of 50 miles or more during the Thanksgiving holiday travel period — AAA’s second-highest travel forecast on record for the holiday.

Nationally, more than 55.3 million Americans are expected to travel for the holiday.

But according to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand decreased from 9.49 to 8.95 million barrels per day last week — a move contrary to the agency’s typical estimate for early November.

Total domestic gasoline stocks, meanwhile, decreased 0.7% to 215.7 million barrels of crude. AAA said lower gas demand, alongside declining oil prices, drove pump prices down.