Gasoline prices may fall more

Gasoline prices dropped Tuesday for the 26th straight day as lower oil prices continue to work their way to the nation's drivers. There may be room for prices to move even lower.

After hitting a national average of $2.929 per gallon May 6, retail gasoline prices had fallen 20.2 cents, or nearly 7 percent, to $2.727 per gallon by Tuesday.

Tom Kloza of the Oil Price Information Service, an industry group, said that while the daily streak of lower prices is likely to end before mid-June, prices still have another 10 or 12 cents to fall.

Prices in some parts of the country already are well below the national average. Ohio, Missouri, South Carolina and Oklahoma are among the states where gas has dropped below $2.60 per gallon.

Oil has fallen from $87.15 per barrel a month ago amid worries that the European debt crisis could hurt the global economic recovery and squash demand for crude.

Retail gasoline prices fell 5.5 cents in the past week and 15.6 cents in the past month. Pump prices are 21.5 cents higher than a year ago.

Oil prices finished lower Tuesday after testing higher levels. Benchmark crude for July delivery fell $1.39 to settle at $72.58 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Oil prices moved higher earlier in the session as the euro rose against the dollar, but fell back as the euro weakened again. Commodities priced in dollars, like oil, become more expensive for investors holding euros when the dollar gains.

U.S. stock markets had a hard time deciding which way to go after the Commerce Department said construction spending rose by the biggest amount in nearly a decade and the Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing index came in better in May than economists forecast. Less than an hour before the close, the Dow Jones Industri! al Average was up about 5 points. The NASDAQ and the S&P 500 were down a few points.

In other Nymex trading in July contracts, heating oil lost 3.41 cents to settle at $1.9704 a gallon. Gasoline lost 4.41 cents to close at $1.9825 a gallon. Natural gas fell 9.3 cents to settle at $4.248 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, the Brent crude July contact fell $1.94 to settle at $72.71 on the ICE futures exchange.