TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — After rising 32 cents over two weeks, gas prices in Florida dropped slightly during the first full week of January, giving drivers a little relief at the pump.
According to AAA, the average cost of regular unleaded gasoline fell to $3.30 per gallon on Sunday, almost 2 cents less than what it cost the previous week.
Prices declined for six consecutive weeks in November and December, falling 59 cents to an average of $2.99 a gallon on Dec. 26. They shot up a whopping 32 cents per gallon during the end of December and first week of January.
“Gas prices soared in recent weeks, after winter storms caused temporary refinery outages,” said AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins “Last week, we saw fuel prices retreat again, as refinery activity ramped back up and the market turned bearish on global fuel demand, due to rising cases of COVID-19 in China.”
“Don’t expect significant discounts at the gas pump overnight,” Jenkins added. “Gas prices always rise like a rocket and fall like a feather. That’s because retailers often prefer to offload the more expensive gasoline first, then wait for their next delivery before lowering prices. So it could take a few weeks before retail prices fully adjust to the recent oil price drop. And that’s assuming that oil prices don’t change course between now and then.”
On Sunday, the most expensive metro markets in Florida were West Palm Beach-Boca Raton ($3.46), Sebastian-Vero Beach ($3.36) and Port St. Lucie ($3.34). The least expensive were Panama City ($3.13), Crestview-Fort Walton Beach ($3.13) and Pensacola ($3.14).
As of this writing, the average price of gas in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater is $3.293 per gallon. In Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice, it’s $3.272 per gallon. In Lakeland-Winter Haven, it is $3.306. The average gas price in Sebring is $3.308.
