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Gas prices down; oil prices rise

It's raining, it's pouring, but the price of gas is down again overnight.

It's raining, it's pouring, but the price of gas is down again overnight.

The average for a gallon of regular no-lead in the five-county Philadelphia area went down 2 cents, to $1.82, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.

South Jersey's average was down a cent, to $1.55; the national average was down 2 cents, to $1.66.

Diesel prices also declined: the Philly region's by 2 cents, to $2.86; South Jersey's by 1 cent, to $2.54; and the national average by 3 cents, to $2.59.

Meanwhile, oil prices rose about 4 percent today to near $45 a barrel as investors looked past an energy watchdog's warnings that global demand is sliding sharply and focused on expectations of a big OPEC production cut next week.

A weaker dollar and news that Congress was one step closer to approving $14 billion in loans to Detroit's automakers also helped boost prices, although another poor unemployment report in the United States kept a lid on gains.

On Wednesday, the contract rose 3.4 percent, or $1.45, to settle at $43.52.