Oct. 21—VALDOSTA — Gasoline prices in Lowndes County eased over the last week, in line with state and national trends.

The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in Valdosta Friday was $2.86, down eight cents from $2.94 seven days earlier, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

The lowest price in Valdosta Friday was $2.67 per gallon at several retailers; the lowest price in Tifton that day was $2.74 at a store on U.S. 82 East, according to the price tracking website gasbuddy.com.

Valdosta had the third-lowest average gas price Friday among the 15 Georgia markets monitored by the auto club: above Dalton and Albany but below Warner Robins, Savannah, Rome, Macon, Hinesville, Gainesville, Columbus, Catoosa, Brunswick, Augusta, Atlanta and Athens.

Nationally, the average price of gasoline Friday was $3.56 per gallon, down seven cents in a week, while Georgia's average of $3.03 per gallon was down six cents in the same period, the AAA said.

"While gas prices are falling about a penny a day, that feels like a glacial pace," said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson. "The oil market is watching to see if the war between Israel and Hamas widens, so the price is stuck at a rather elevated price in the mid-$80s per barrel. This, in turn, is slowing the decline in gas prices."

In Friday's market action, a barrel of benchmark U.S. oil added 1.1% to $89.33. It's been bouncing around since the latest Hamas-Israel war began, after leaping from $70 to more than $93 through the summer. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 1% to $93.32 per barrel.

Terry Richards is the senior reporter for The Valdosta Daily Times.