U.S. gasoline price falls for third week: Gov't

By Tom Doggett

WASHINGTON, Aug 31 (Reuters) - U.S. drivers found it cheaper to fill up at the pump as the retail price for gasoline declined for the third week in a row, the Energy Department said on Monday.

The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline fell 1.5 cents over the last week to $2.61 a gallon, down $1.07 from a year ago, the department's Energy Information Administration said in its weekly survey of service stations.

The fall in pump prices reflects the drop in crude oil prices, which account for about 60 percent of the cost of making gasoline. Those savings for refiners are passed on to consumers at the pump.

The price for U.S. crude oil fell $2.78 on Monday, settling just under $70 a barrel in futures trading at the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In its weekly price survey, the EIA found the West Coast had the most expensive gasoline at $2.96 a gallon, up 0.8 cent. By city, San Francisco had the highest price at $3.07, up 1.9 cents.

The Gulf Coast states had the lowest regional price at $2.46 a gallon, down 2.9 cents. Houston had the cheapest city pump price at $2.42, down 4.5 cents.

The agency also said gasoline prices were up 4.4 cents at $2.88 in Seattle; down 0.1 cent at $2.69 in Miami; up 0.4 cent at $2.69 in New York; down 2.3 cents at $2.68 in Chicago; up 1 cent at $2.62 in Boston; down 2.2 cents at $2.53 in Cleveland and down 1.5 cents at $2.50 in Denver.

Separately, the average price for diesel fuel increased for the sixth week in a row, up 0.6 cent to $2.67 a gallon. That is down $1.45 from a year ago, the EIA said.

The West Coast had the most expensive diesel at $2.80 a gallon, up 1.7 cents. The Gulf Coast region had the cheapest diesel fuel at $2.62, down 0.4 cent. (Editing by Christian Wiessner)