Windsor-Essex commuters are getting a little relief at the gas pump Monday, though it could be short-lived.
According to the consumer website Gasbuddy.com, the price of a litre of self-serve regular gasoline is, on average, at least a dime less than reported late last week.
As of Monday morning, a Petro-Canada station on Walker Road in Windsor had the lowest price per litre, at $1.31. The price was $1.33 per litre Monday at Shell and Canadian Tire stations on Tecumseh Road in Windsor.
The reprieve in gas-pump sticker shock follows a big drop in oil prices on Friday. A barrel of WTI U.S. crude oil went from $78.12 to $68.17.
While the drop in gas prices is welcome news to drivers, many experts expect the price to rebound. Gas industry analyst Dan McTeague told Global News on Friday that the dip was due to concern over the COVID-19 Omicron variant in South Africa, but the market could head back up as soon as this week.
"There is a strong sense, and I would agree with that, that it’s overdone and when American energy traders get back to work Monday morning after their long weekend, we may very well see the prices move back up as early as Wednesday. So take advantage of this," McTeague told the network.
The rebound may already be underway. As of 8:30 a.m. Monday, the WTI crude price was trading at $71.74 per barrel, according to OilPrices.com.