Regionally, residents could find even cheaper gas. The Casey’s gas station at West Main Street and Clayton Road in New Lebanon had gas at $2.61 Monday morning. The Marathon, also near West Main Street and Clayton Road in New Lebanon, and the Sheetz that opened on Old Troy Pike in Huber Heights in September also were selling gas at $2.61 per gallon, according to GasBuddy.
A month ago the Dayton area’s average was $3.605 and the national average was $3.857.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said gas prices should continue to drop.
“For now, the national average is likely to soon fall to its lowest level in six months,” he said. “Some areas of the Great Lakes could see a price cycle in the next few weeks, which is typical after long declines as stations often pass along the drops there faster than anywhere else. I believe the national average still has some 15-35 cents of declining to do the way things stand now.”
De Haan added conflict in the Middle East and Gaza could impact gas prices, noting Friday saw oil prices rise almost 5%, the largest single-day rise since April.
“While the oil market has cooled slightly since then, it certainly could see more activity again in the week ahead,” he said. “...As the situation continues to unfold, markets will be watching interactions between Iran as well as responses from Israel, and while all eyes have been on those escalations, Saudi Arabia has put an end for now to a possible weapons and security pact between the U.S. and Israel.”
While local and national prices have continued to drop over the last month, they’re also down compared to the same time last year.
A year ago, Dayton’s average was $3.752 — about 75 cents more expensive. It was just 10 cents fewer than the national average this time last year, at $3.867.
As of Monday, the most common gas price in the country was $3.19, according to GasBuddy.
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