You can find gas for $1.99 tonight at service stations near the University of Dayton, even as GasBuddy issued a warning earlier Thursday of an “impending noticeable increase” in gas prices as oil markets surged on the largest decline in oil inventories ever reported by the Energy Information Administration.
A manager at the United Dairy Farmer store at Brown and East Stewart streets said the price there is likely to last through the weekend. She said couldn’t say why the price was under two dollars.
The Speedway, right next door, was also selling gas for $1.99. A manager there said that price will hold at least through Friday morning.
Gas prices elsewhere in the Dayton area tonight were ranging from 2.03 to 2.13, GasBuddy.com reported.
Thursday’s EIA report showed a decline in crude oil inventories of 14.5 million barrels (609 million gallons) along with a 4.2-million-barrel decline in gasoline inventories, causing oil prices to almost immediately jump $2 per barrel.
The decline in inventories was likely fueled by delayed offloading of imported oil from crude carriers as a result of Hurricane Hermine.
While the drop in oil inventories is likely to reverse as oil shipments begin being offloaded again, there is still likely to be an increase in gasoline prices coming because of Thursday’s reaction in oil markets.
Gasoline prices are likeliest to rise in the Great Lakes region, an area that typically sees among the quickest reaction to drastic changes in the price of petroleum.
Gas prices may rise 10-35 cents per gallon as soon as tomorrow morning throughout Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Missouri and areas of Wisconsin and Illinois.
The uptick in gas prices will likely be temporary until oil inventory numbers reflect the flow of oil resuming which will eventually bring falling gas prices back. GasBuddy is still expecting plenty of sub-$2 per gallon gasoline this autumn and winter.
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