Auto Club: Gas Prices Continue Tumbling; National Average Dips Below $4 A Gallon

Plunging oil prices and the possibility of a fully reopened Strait of Hormuz brought the national gas price average below $4 a gallon today and delivered a fourth week of hefty price decreases in Southern California, according to the Auto Club's Weekend Gas Watch. Today's statewide average for a gallon of regular gasoline is $5.64, which is 16 cents less than last week but still $1 higher than at this time last year. The national average is $3.99, which is 13 cents lower than last week and 81 cents higher than on this date last year.

The average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area is $5.64 per gallon, 18 cents lower than last week and 99 cents higher than a year ago. In San Diego, the average price is $5.68, which is 14 cents lower than last week and $1.01 higher than this time last year.

On the Central Coast, the average price is $5.68, down 15 cents from last week and $1.08 higher than a year ago. In Riverside, the average price per gallon is $5.47, 20 cents lower than last week and $1.02 higher than a year ago. In Bakersfield, the $5.83 average is nine cents lower than last week and $1.25 higher than one year ago.

"Oil prices are trading below $80 a barrel today and gas prices in Southern California have tumbled by about 60 cents a gallon below their highest point of the year reached in early May," said Auto Club spokesperson Kandace Redd. "But there is still a long way to go to reach the prices that drivers were paying at this time last year. Consumers should continue to aggressively shop around for the lowest gas prices near them using an online tool such as the free AAA Mobile app."

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