Local drivers jump at $2.99 gas

Local drivers jump at $2.99 gas

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Story Published: Oct 13, 2008 at 3:32 PM PDT

Story Updated: Nov 21, 2008 at 3:49 AM PDT

By KOMO Staff & News Services

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KENT, Wash. -- It's been long time since folks felt good about coming into the gas station.

But at this Shell station near the intersection of Highway 167 and Willis in Kent, regular unleaded is just $2.99 a gallon.

"I've got a gas guzzler so I'm glad about it," said Kanika Lewis as she stopped to fill up her tank. "Anything below $3.00 now I can actually get a half a tank for about $30."

Prices fell below $4 just a few months ago, and at this station it was back below $3 for the first time over the weekend.

But the new price point was such good news to drivers passing by that the station ran out of gas by mid-morning.

Station manager Kim Slater had signs put up telling customers that the next shippment of gas wouldn't be in for a few hours.

The Shell station says it's averaging 4,000 customers a day, and $2.99 is just the start of the drop in prices.

A new shipment of gas arrived about 11 a.m., and customers were back to pumping their sub-$3 gas.

The AAA auto club says the average price of a gallon of gas in Washington is $3.40. That's down 41 cents in the past month and 95 cents from the record high in July.

The state average is still 19 cents higher than the national average.

Crude's oil's steep pullback has caught some market observers off guard. Goldman Sachs, which for weeks maintained a bullish outlook on oil even as prices collapsed, on Monday cut its year-end crude price forecast from $115 a barrel to $70, citing the "extreme dislocation" in the credit markets.

"We clearly underestimated the depth and duration of the global financial crisis and its implications on economic growth and commodity demand," Goldman said.

Investors are watching for signs that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries may cut production at an extraordinary meeting in Vienna on Nov 18.

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