Decline in gasoline prices slows

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A decline in gasoline prices slowed this past week, falling two cents to a national average of $3.28 a gallon.

This is 11 cents less than a month ago but $1.03 more than a year ago.

Prices were affected by fears of the latest COVID-19 variant and news of a severe fire at an Exxon Mobil Corp. oil refinery in Baytown, Texas, on Dec. 23. The location is one of the nation’s largest refining and petrochemical facilities.

“We should learn more in the coming days about the extent of the damage to the refinery,” Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson, said. “If it can be back up and running in a few weeks, the effect could be minimal. But if repairs take months, consumers could begin seeing higher prices again at the pump.”

The 10 markets seeing the largest decreases were South Dakota, New Mexico, Michigan, Illinois, Utah, Ohio, Arizona, Oklahoma, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Prices dropped between 3 cents and 6 cents.

The 10 most expensive markets were California, Hawaii, Washington, Nevada, Oregon, Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Pennsylvania, and Utah. The average price per gallon in those states ranged from $3.51 to $4.66.

Typically, prices drop this time of year because of increased supply and falling demand.