Unprecedented drop in gas prices will continue, industry analyst says

The coronavirus pandemic has destroyed global demand for oil, leading to the lowest oil prices in 18 years, an industry analyst said.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a collapse in prices, even including the Great Recession,” said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. “What we’re witnessing is easily going to go down as the great collapse in oil demand, and for motorists hurrying to fill up today, they’re wasting their money as prices will continue to drop in the days ahead.”

DeHaan expects prices to drop between 35 and 75 cents a gallon per gallon at most stations in the weeks ahead.

DeHaan said “there’s plenty more room for prices to drop, putting 99 cents per gallon prices as a strong possibility for perhaps many more stations than we previously anticipated.”

In the Pittsburgh area, gas prices have fallen 8.4 cents per gallon in the past week to an average of $2.39, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 731 stations. That’s 28.4 cents per gallon less than a month ago, and 37.8 cents per gallon less than a year ago.

A check of Pennsylvania gas-price reports Monday morning found the lowest price in the state was $1.65 at a station in Lehigh County. In Western Pennsylvania, the prices at a Sheetz and a Citgo in New Castle and at Costco in Cranberry were all among the state’s lowest at $1.89.

The national average has fallen 12.8 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.08. That’s 38.5 cents per gallon less than a month ago, and 54.7 cents per gallon less than a year ago.

Neighboring areas and their current gas prices:

• Akron — $1.68, down 13.5 cents per gallon from last week;

• Cleveland — $1.78, down 17.8 cents per gallon from last week;

• West Virginia — $2.05, down 9.4 cents per gallon from last week.