Jeff Wendt and Janet Perez

Drivers in the Valley are getting some relief at the pumps, as gas prices dropped 15 cents a gallon to $3.84 a gallon, AAA Arizona said in a release on Thursday.

Gas prices in the state fell 14 cents a gallon to $3.97 a gallon, dropping for the fifth consecutive week.

Prices are also dropping In Queen Creek, with the most expensive gas at $3.99 for a gallon of regular, down from $4.19 last week.

The lowest price for a gallon of regular continues to be at the Costco on 20220 S. Ellsworth Road at $3.49 a gallon, down from $3.69 last week, according to gasbuddy.com.

Aside from Costco, gas prices throughout the town are running from $3.75 to $3.99 a gallon.

“Crude oil prices have fallen to their lowest levels in months, dropping to the $60 a barrel range,” said Aldo Vazquez, spokesperson for AAA Mountain West Group. “Gas prices remain the highest they’ve been in four years, but the downward trend since late May is welcome news as we head into the Fourth of July weekend.”

At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, crude oil prices fell 92 cents to settle at $68.58 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration reports crude oil inventories decreased by 3.8 million barrels from the previous week. At 408.4 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about 7% below the five-year average for this time of year.

Gasoline demand increased last week from 8.77 million barrels per day to 9.13 million. Total domestic gasoline supply decreased from 216.3 million barrels to 214 million. Gasoline production increased last week, averaging 10 million barrels per day.

The Valley is just above the national average, which is $3.83 a gallon. The Top 5 states for highest gas prices are Hawaii ($5.48), California ($5.40), Washington ($5.09), Alaska ($4.79) and Oregon ($4.62).

In the Valley, according to gasbuddy.com, the cheapest gas can be found at In the Zone at Signal Butte and Main Street in Apache Junction at $3.19 a gallon and at Sam’s Club in Gilbert at Gilbert Road and Houston Avenue and at Sam’s Club at the Tempe Marketplace at $3.34 a gallon.