Auto Club: Gas Prices Start Dropping Again

After a few weeks of holding steady, Southern California gas price averages dropped by about a penny a day in many areas this last week, according to the Auto Club's Weekend Gas Watch. The average price for self-serve regular gasoline in California is $4.71, which is six cents lower than a week ago. The average national price is $3.50, which is four cents lower than a week ago.

The average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area is $4.69 per gallon, which is seven cents lower than last week and 29 cents less than last year. In San Diego, the average price is $4.77, which is five cents lower than last week and 19 cents lower than this time last year.

On the Central Coast, the average price is $4.87, which is four cents lower than last week and eight cents lower than last year. In Riverside, the average per-gallon price is $4.63, which is six cents lower than last week and 22 cents lower than a year ago. In Bakersfield, the $4.81 average price is two cents less than last week and five cents lower than a year ago today.

"According to Oil Price Information Service, California refinery production has dropped for three weeks in a row, but gasoline inventories rose in the last week, possibly indicating a slump in demand," said Auto Club spokesperson Doug Shupe. "Los Angeles wholesale gasoline prices have also been dropping in the last few days, so hopefully the gas price declines will continue."

The Weekend Gas Watch monitors the average price of gasoline. As of 9 a.m. on July 18, averages are: