Monday, February 1, 2010 8:52 am

Average retail gasoline prices in Tennessee have fallen 4.9 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.54/g today. This compares with the national average that has fallen 2.1 cents per gallon in the last week to $2.67/g, according to gasoline price website TennesseeGasPrices.com.

Including the change in gas prices in Tennessee during the past week, prices today are 79.0 cents per gallon higher than the same day one year ago and are 4.1 cents per gallon higher than a month ago. The national average has increased 2.7 cents per gallon during the last month and stands 81.5 cents per gallon higher than this day a year ago.

"Prices will slowly fall across much of the country as a stronger dollar and better than expected gains in gasoline inventories push oil prices lower", says GasBuddy.com Senior Petroleum Analyst, Patrick DeHaan.

DeHaan says that motorists can expect to see lower prices at the pump through mid-February before rising in March and April as refiners complete work on their plants. He also notes the significant jump in prices compared to last year, saying "higher gasoline prices are making it hard for the economy to recover as many Americans are still jobless, looking for employment."

About TennesseeGasPrices.com

GasBuddy.com operates over 200 live gasoline price-tracking websites, including TennesseeGasPrices.com. GasBuddy.com was named one of Time magazine's 50 best websites and to PC World's 100 most useful websites of 2008.