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A Fuel-Good Story At Summer's End
"Life's got to be a little better if gas is going down," said Lisa Craig, a teacher, at a Texaco station in Bethesda.
(Photos By Chris Combs For The Washington Post)
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Crude oil prices have dropped from near $80 a barrel to $70.61 yesterday on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The gasoline supply situation has improved as well -- at a time when the industry is less likely to hoard it for fear of being unable to meet demand.
"They've improved right at the end of the season," said Doug MacIntyre, senior oil market analyst at the U.S. Energy Information Administration, adding that demand drops by 3 to 5 percent from August to September. "Without any major hurricanes seemingly poised to pounce on oil infrastructure . . . even a small increase in inventory is more than enough to get us through the peak demand season without a problem."
So, analysts say, barring a pipeline break, a hurricane hitting a refinery or renewed international jitters to drive up crude oil prices, consumers can look forward to further savings at the pump. Also, manufacturing costs tend to decline when some regions of the country switch to winter-grade gasoline, which will happen over the next several months. But the declines are not expected to be as steep as those of the past few weeks.
However, some motorists in the region said yesterday that they were skeptical about prices going down, adding that the recent drop was not nearly enough.
"It has to go down a lot for it to make a difference to me," said Mark Ezra, 37, a Rockville resident, as he pumped his Infiniti QX56 sport-utility vehicle's tank full of $3.29-a-gallon premium gas at the Wisconsin Avenue Texaco station in Bethesda. "This is the biggest gas guzzler there is."
Mac McLaughlin, 64, an airport shuttle driver from Falls Church, knows the effect of fluctuating prices more than most. But this month's dip won't mean much for him in the long run, he said
"It's the price of existence," he said as he filled up for $2.99 a gallon at an Exxon station at Wisconsin Avenue and Q Street in the District. "It's a little cheaper in Virginia, but you don't drive 10 miles just to save five cents. Your time is your money, too."
