Phila.-area gas prices slip 4 cents a gallon

Gas was 4 cents a gallon cheaper over the last week in Philadelphia and its four nearest counties, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic. The price averaged $2.77 this morning for a gallon of regular no-lead.

South Jersey's average also dropped 4 cents a gallon, to $2.54 today.

The national average was down 3 cents from last Friday, to $2.70.

In the diesel lanes, the Philly area saw a 2-cent decrease in the last week, to $3.15 a gallon. South Jersey's diesel average was down 3 cents, to $2.80.

The national diesel average was down 2 cents since lat Friday, to $2.97.

Meanwhile, Oil prices hovered near $75 a barrel Friday after a big jump the day before as China's booming trade and lower U.S. jobless claims lifted stock markets and confidence in the global economic recovery.

Benchmark crude for July delivery was down 50 cents at $74.97 a barrel late morning London time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.10 to settle at $75.48 a barrel on Thursday.

The International Energy Agency on Thursday raised its forecasts for global oil demand this year, citing stronger than expected economic activity in developed economies. The IEA, based in Paris, boosted its estimate by 60,000 barrels to 86.4 million barrels a day. That's a 2 percent increase from 2009.

The U.S. Labor Department, meanwhile, said jobless claims fell to 456,000 last week. Total claims fell by the largest amount in nearly a year.

In other Nymex trading in July contracts, heating oil rose 0.22 cent to $2.0350 a gallon while gasoline fell 0.19 cent at $2.0686 a gallon. Natural gas gained 6.1 cents to $4.708 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Brent crude was up 18 cents at $75.47 on the ICE futures exchange.