Gas prices may not drop further, expert predicts

LOS ANGELES — Though gas prices have dropped back under $2 a gallon, travelers may not get any more breaks as vacation season heats up, an industry analyst said.

Fears of terrorism and sabotage in Iraq and Saudi Arabia could offset OPEC’s decision to increase oil production in July, said Trilby Lundberg, who publishes the semimonthly Lundberg Survey of U.S. gas stations.

The weighted national average price for all three grades of gasoline fell to $1.97 per gallon on Friday, 6.6 cents lower than two weeks earlier, after rising more than 59 cents between mid-December and June, Lundberg said.

The biggest-selling gas, self-serve regular, averaged $1.94 a gallon.

Lundberg said Sunday that the decline — which followed another drop two weeks ago — was partly due to moderating oil prices and the completion of U.S. refinery maintenance projects.

Lundberg reported average per-gallon prices at self-serve pumps at about $2.04 for midgrade gas and $2.13 for premium, including taxes.