Dec. 29--Gasoline prices in Chicago averaged $2.41 per gallon on Sunday, a decline of more than $1 from a year earlier, according to GasBuddy, a website that tracks gas prices.
For the next few months, it's likely gas prices in Chicago will continue to fluctuate between $2 and $3 a gallon, said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst with GasBuddy. In the suburbs, prices could continue to hover around $2 a gallon, he said.
"That's the big question, will (prices) continue to drop or will they hold the line," DeHaan said.
Crude oil prices can rebound quickly if oil producing companies cut production, but that's unlikely, DeHaan said. Saudi Arabia, a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its largest oil producer, has shown no interest in cutting production.
Nationwide, prices have fallen by about $1 per gallon to $2.28 from the same day last year. The price drop is saving motorists about $375 million, GasBuddy said.
Michigan leads the nation in lower gas prices. Prices there have fallen by $1.85 per gallon since June 28. It is followed by Kentucky, where prices have fallen by $1.66 per gallon, and Indiana, where prices have fallen by $1.62 per gallon. In Illinois, gas prices are down $1.60 per gallon in the same period.
DeHaan said prices have declined because the price of crude oil has dropped by about 50 percent from more than $100 per barrel earlier this year. The price has leveled off in the past 10 days.
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