Gas Prices Drop for 1st Time in 4 Months

CAMARILLO, Calif. April 6, 2003; AP reported that gas prices dropped 6 cents a gallon nationwide over the past two weeks as oil market jitters about the war in Iraq eased, an industry analyst said Sunday.

Trilby Lundberg attributed the decrease to greater certainty about Middle East oil supplies. Only a few Iraqi oil fields have been set on fire and the blazes were extinguished quickly, he said.

Lundberg said the increased confidence pushed down crude prices, which are reflected at the pump.

The average price, including all grades and taxes, was about $1.70 a gallon Friday, according to the Lundberg survey of 8,000 gas stations across the country. That was a decrease of 6.03 cents from March 21, the date of the last Lundberg survey.

The national weighted average price, including taxes, at self-serve pumps Friday was about $1.67 for regular, $1.76 for mid-grade and $1.85 for premium.

The price of a barrel of oil Friday was $28.62, down from $34.93 on March 17 - the day President Bush gave Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave Iraq or face war