Montana Gas Prices Drop a Third Time, Still Higher Than Average

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - It might not be a lot, but Montana gas prices have now dropped three weeks in a row. Patrick De Haan is the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy and he provided the current numbers.      

“Average gasoline prices in Montana have fallen 1.4 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.48 per gallon today,” De Haan said. “Prices in Montana are 5.3 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and stand 49.1 cents per gallon lower than a year ago.”                        

As of Monday morning, many stations in Missoula still had their prices set to around $3.54 per gallon.     

According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Montana was priced at $3.24 per gallon yesterday while the most expensive was $4.54 per gallon.                          

Montana is currently ranked 13th in the U.S. when it comes to the average price of gas, which is two spots higher than last week.      

“The national average price of gasoline has fallen 4.2 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.37 per gallon today,” De Haan said. “The national average is down 11.4 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 47.8 cents per gallon lower than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has fallen 2.6 cents in the last week and stands at $3.69 per gallon.”                      

READ MORE: Montana Gas Prices Dip: What You Need to Know Before Filling Up

According to DeHaan, gasoline and diesel prices continue to trail off across much of the country as summer demand fades away.  

“Lower demand in other oil-consuming nations is also helping to lead the downward pressure on pump prices as we approach Labor Day," said De Haan. "With little new action in the Middle East to rile up prices and Hurricane Ernesto remaining far out at sea, it looks like the downward trend could continue into the week ahead. As more schools begin to resume, gasoline demand will likely continue to ease. With the transition to winter gasoline less than a month away for the majority of the nation, gas prices will soon begin their seasonal cooling off— just as temperatures soon will as well."