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Oct. 13—VALDOSTA — Gasoline prices took a dive over the past week on the South Georgia, statewide and national levels.
The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in Valdosta Friday was $2.94, down 12 cents in a week, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.
The lowest price reported in Lowndes County Friday was $2.69 per gallon at a South Patterson Street store, according to the price tracking website gasbuddy.com. The lowest price reported Friday in Tifton was $2.84 per gallon at a store on U.S. 84 West.
Friday, Valdosta had the fourth-lowest average gas price among the 15 Georgia markets monitored by the auto club: Above Catoosa, Athens and Albany but below Warner Robins, Savannah, Rome, Macon, Hinesville, Gainesville, Dalton, Columbus, Brunswick, Augusta and Athens.
Nationally, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline Friday was $3.63, down 12 cents in seven days, while Georgia's average of $3.09 per gallon was down 10 cents in the same period, AAA said.
"As long as (the Israeli-Palestinian) war does not spread to include more countries in the region, the effect on the oil market will remain muted," said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson. "Here in the U.S., there are now nine states with some county gas averages below $3 a gallon, and this number will likely increase in the coming weeks."
In Friday market trading, a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude jumped 4.5% to $86.63. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 4.3% to $89.67 per barrel.
While the Gaza region is not a major producer of oil, the fear is that the violence could spill into the politics around the crude market and eventually lead to disruptions in the flow of petroleum.
Terry Richards is the senior reporter for The Valdosta Daily Times.