Gas prices continued to fall throughout the nation on Tuesday, bringing financial relief to people as consumer prices rose in other areas.
The national average price for a gallon of regular gas dropped to $3.081, according to AAA. It’s the latest decrease in the fuel sector this month after gradual increases at the pumps in February. Today’s costs are lower than the gas price from a week ago, when it was $3.099 per gallon. It is also cheaper than the average cost of a gallon of regular gas last month, when it was $3.141, and a year ago, when it was $3.397.
Tuesday’s fuel costs are the lowest since the first half of January. They’re also less expensive than on Jan. 20, former President Joe Biden‘s last day in office, when the national average cost for a gallon of regular gas was $3.125.
Gas prices have been a controversial issue and at the epicenter of political conversations regarding energy and the economy during the last two presidential administrations. This was especially true during the Biden administration, during which fuel prices hit record highs. During Biden’s time in office, especially compared to President Donald Trump’s first term between January 2017 and January 2021, expensive fuel costs plagued the country. During that period, a gallon of regular gas was $2.476. It was also the last time the national average price for a gallon of regular gas was under $3.
Gas prices increased to over $3 per gallon shortly after Biden’s inauguration, beginning in June 2021. Approximately a year later, the cost of a gallon of regular gas soared to $4.929, the most expensive in the nation’s history. Fuel prices began to drop the next month but fluctuated between 2022 and 2024.
The downward trend of gas prices is good news for Trump. He campaigned to lower gas prices in the country, and up until recently, the results were mixed. Furthermore, given the recent jobs report, which saw the country not achieve its forecasted total and the unemployment rate slightly increase, especially with the rough economic news of the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 890 points on Monday, a decrease at the pumps is welcomed.
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However, gas prices are expected to fluctuate in the upcoming weeks and months. Nevertheless, fuel costs vary throughout the country. Some states have much higher prices than others. In various areas, the price of regular gas decreases depending on the day, while in others, the average cost rises. Mississippi has the lowest average gas prices, at $2.627 per gallon. Meanwhile, California is the most expensive state in the nation for gas, with an average cost of $4.694 per gallon.
In and around Washington, D.C., prices differ depending on the state. In Delaware, the state average for a gallon of regular gas dropped to $2.803 on Tuesday, a 27-cent decrease compared to a month ago. In Virginia, it costs $2.878 for a gallon of regular gas, while in Maryland, it is $2.923. In Washington, regular gas is more expensive than the national average, and it has the highest price in the region, with a price of $3.21 per gallon.
