L.A. gas prices may be heading down very soon

The price for unblended gasoline has been falling sharply, reports the LAT, which cites oil analyst Tom Kloza. The unblended stuff is actually called California Reformulated Gasoline Blendstocks for Oxygenate Blending, or CARBOB, and it's the basis for the finished product we get at the pump. Overnight, the CARBOB price fell 17 cents to $3.24 a gallon. That's down 51 cents from the $3.75 recorded on Feb. 24. From the Times:

"California is often the first market in the country to peak," said Kloza, "and the trend spreads from west to east. We're still looking at more increases in prices in states east of the Rockies, but this is a notable development that should eliminate the insane predictions of $5-a-gallon gasoline."

There have been signs that the price run-up was peaking out. As of this morning, an average gallon of regular in the L.A. area is $4.398, according to the Auto Club, which is up only a couple of pennies from last week. Oil, at last check, was trading at under $106 a barrel, which is roughly where it's been for the last few days.