Gas prices hold steady; Palm Beach still most expensive

By Palm Beach Business.com

DELRAY BEACH — Gasoline prices pretty much have been holding steady for the past month, according to the latest numbers from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The average price nationally for a gallon of regular gasoline sat at $1.941 compared to $1.934 a week ago and $1.926 a month ago.

In Florida, the EIA says regular is going for an average of $1.964 a gallon, compared to $1.956 a week ago and $1.959 a month ago.

AAA’s Fuel Gauge Report Tuesday put regular at $2.068 in Palm Beach County, versus $2.08 a month ago. As usually it’s the highest In Florida; Miami was second at $2.04 a gallon.

Diesel, meanwhile, continues to fall, to $2.045 a gallon nationally from $2.087 a week ago and $2.219 a month ago, according to EIA data.

In Palm Beach County, diesel is averaging $2.218 a gallon, according to AAA.

Crude oil, not surprisingly the single biggest cost factor in gasoline, has been trading in a range between $43 and $47 a barrel for the past several weeks. Gasoline futures, meanwhile have spiked as high as $1.36 a gallon before settling back down to about $1.29. Refineries have been operating at about 80 to 83 percent capacity as they perform maintenance.