With Hurricane Debby having little effect on oil production in the Gulf of Mexico, average gasoline prices dropped 14 cents a gallon in Florida during the past week.
The AAA auto club AAA said Florida motorists Monday paid an average of $3.32 for a gallon of regular unleaded, down from $3.46 a week earlier.
Hurricane Debby moved up the Gulf Coast before making landfall Aug. 5 near the Taylor County community of Steinhatchee as a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph.
“Drivers got some relief at the pump last week, thanks to big drops in the price of crude and gasoline futures,” AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said in a prepared statement. “Fuel prices had fallen under downward pressure amid concerns of a global recession. However, futures prices regained some ground last week, on renewed economic optimism, which could lead to a slight bump at the pump.”
Nationally, motorists paid an average of $3.44 on Monday, down from $3.47 a week earlier, according to AAA.