U.S. says average gas price to drop below $3 per gallon in 2015

The average price of gasoline will be below $3 a gallon in 2015, the government predicted Wednesday. If the sharply lower estimate holds true, U.S. consumers will save $61 billion on gas compared with this year. In a monthly report, the Energy Department reduced its forecast for global oil prices next year by $18 a barrel to $83. Weakness in the global economy will crimp demand for oil, while production in places like the U.S. keeps rising. The result: Drivers will pay $2.94 per gallon on average in 2015, 45 cents lower than this year. Based on expected gasoline consumption, that’s a savings of $60.9 billion. That may not seem like a lot in the context of a $17.5 trillion U.S. economy, but economists say it matters because it immediately gives consumers more money to spend on other things. Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of the U.S. economy.