NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – California drivers are seeing gas prices drop or stabilize despite the continuing oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The latest report from AAA Northern California shows, out of 25 metro areas where AAA tracks gas prices, all but three have seen decreases in their average prices compared to AAA’s last survey on May 11.

 

“The leaking oil in the Gulf is coming from an exploratory well operation, meaning the oil itself is not immediately being counted on in the markets, so it has not impacted the price at the pump,” said AAA Northern California spokesperson Matt Skryja. “Economic concerns, particularly in Europe, along with unemployment data, low demand, and high oil reserves are helping to keep the prices low.”

 

California’s average gas price is the third highest among all 50 states according to the latest report from AAA, which tracks gasoline prices as a service to consumers.

The Golden State’s average for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline is $3.08, down seven cents since last month’s report. For perspective, that’s 17 cents more than California’s average price on this date last year, when it was $2.91.

 

Northern California gas prices are now averaging $3.09, down seven cents from last month.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, motorists can expect to pay an average price of $3.19, which is a three-cent drop. The national average price of $2.72 is down by 18 cents, which is 10 cents more than the national price on this date last year, when it was $2.62.

 

In discussing the oil market, much of the focus remains on the biggest oil disaster in U.S. history at the Deepwater Horizon drilling site.

The Obama administration recently put a hold on any new deepwater exploratory drilling in the U.S. for six months.

The spill continues to be very much on the minds of investors. Although AAA believes oil prices should not be affected in the short term, the drilling moratorium’s potential long term impact on supply will likely be heavily considered by investors, as they evaluate oil as an investment.

California does not get any of its oil supply from the Gulf region, so any impact to the state’s pump price down the road would potentially be linked to the moratorium, not the spill itself.

 

The least expensive average price in Northern California can be found in Marysville where unleaded is $2.94.

Of all the metro areas in Northern California where gas prices are tracked by AAA, South Lake Tahoe and Eureka’s average prices of $3.25 are the highest. It’s also the highest price in the lower 48 states.

The least expensive gasoline in the country is found in St. Joseph, Missouri, where the average price of gas is $2.38.

Wailuku, Hawaii, holds the dubious crown for the highest average price in the nation, at $3.85 per gallon.