MOSES LAKE – Gas prices have dropped for the second week in a row in Washington, Grant County and nationally. However, Adams County saw a slight increase in fuel prices.  

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said gas prices fell below the $3 mark this weekend; however, that drop is short-lived. 

“Gas prices are likely to rebound soon in the Great Lakes states due to ongoing refinery challenges, while a new snag at a California refinery may slow the pace of declines on the West Coast. To top it off, OPEC+ announced another boost to oil production for December over the weekend, though they also signaled a pause in further increases from January through March. For now, expect the national average to hover in the low-$3 range, potentially drifting lower once refinery issues are resolved,” De Haan said in a statement.  

This is the fourth week in a row that prices have seen decreases in Grant County. As of Monday, prices were sitting at $4.35 in the county. This is a five-cent decrease from last week. As of a month ago, prices were sitting at $4.48, or seven cents more expensive than now.  

Adams County broke its four-week trend of decreasing average fuel prices this week. Prices saw an increase of nearly ten cents this week, with the average fuel price in the county sitting at $4.07. As of a month ago, prices were sitting at $4.45, or 38 cents higher than currently.  

Grant and Adams counties have traditionally had similar prices to one another; however, this week, there is a 28-cent difference between the two counties, with Adams County being a cheaper location to purchase gasoline.  

Grant and Adams counties remain in the middle of the pack for fuel prices in the state. San Juan County is the most expensive at $5.36 and Asotin County is the least expensive at $3.73. This means there is a range of around $1.63 from the least expensive fuel averages in the state.  

Washington’s average fuel prices dropped for the eighth week in a row, with prices sitting at $4.29. Looking back to Sept. 15, prices were sitting at $4.66 and dropped to $4.62 on Sept. 22. Average fuel prices dropped again on Sept. 29 to $4.56 and again Oct. 6 to $4.52. The trend continued with Oct. 13 prices sitting at $ 4.48 and Oct. 20 prices at $4.42. Last week's prices were sitting at $4.35, which means there was a six-cent decrease from last week to Monday. As of a year ago, prices were lower, sitting at $4.03, or 32 cents cheaper than now.   

Only California, at $4.66, and Hawaii, at $4.4,8 have higher average fuel prices in the nation.  

Nationally, there was a one-cent decrease in average gasoline prices from last week with prices sitting at $3.04. A month ago, prices were 11 cents higher at $3.15. As of a year ago, prices were also higher, with the average fuel price sitting at $3.10.