Gas prices expected to decline by 6 cents
Prices could range from $2.77 on Oahu to $3.14 on Lanai
Star-Bulletin staff
After a 25-cent increase in the first two weeks of 2006, the state's price caps on wholesale gasoline are headed down by 6 cents.
Price caps for next week were posted today by the state Public Utilities Commission.
The decrease comes after crude oil prices dipped last week.
Hawaii's price caps are tied to spot wholesale prices in mainland markets, which rise and fall consistent with crude oil futures.
By next week, if wholesalers charged up to the maximum allowed, regular gas in Hawaii is forecast to range from $2.77 a gallon on Oahu to $3.14 a gallon on Lanai.
Those prices include taxes and an assumed dealer markup of 16 cents, although such charges vary and are not governed by the price caps.
Meanwhile, today's statewide average of $2.80 a gallon was 48 cents higher than the national average, according to AAA's Fuel Gauge Report, which bases its survey on credit card transactions from the previous day.
The downward trend could be short-lived, after crude oil prices jumped this week amid growing unease about the possibility of sanctions against Iran, OPEC's second-largest producer, because of its nuclear ambitions. Rising violence in oil-rich Nigeria also fueled concerns over potential supply snags.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.