COLUMBUS – The end of the work week saw a nosedive in gas prices.
The average price of a gallon of regular gas in Columbus Friday morning was $2.10, 8 cents cheaper than on Monday and 13 cents lower than the price the week before, according to a daily survey by the auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and WEX, Inc.
Wholesale markets reacted quickly to an agreement reached Nov. 30 among members of OPEC to cut its collective production, according to the auto club’s analysts (see graph).
The AAA says the price of crude oil gained 12 percent by Monday, leading to increased retail prices, especially in the Midwest and Great Lakes region. Ohio’s price jumped 14 cents between Nov. 28 and Monday, the biggest price increase in the nation.
The statewide average price in Ohio was $2.11 Friday, 9 cents lower than on Dec. 2. The nationwide average price was $2.20.
Oil industry experts held out the possibility that the retail price would not remain high if it appeared that oil prices, which topped $50 a barrel Thursday, would retreat or remains stable.