Phila.-area gas average unchanged at $2.74

The cost of a gallon of regular no-lead went up 1 cent Saturday in the five-county Philadelphia area, but hasn't moved since, says AAA Mid-Atlantic.

This means that it hasn't gone down, but, at $2.74, it hasn't gone up, either.

South Jersey's average has followed that weekend pattern, settling in at $2.54 a gallon. The national average was unchanged over the weekend at $2.69.

The diesel average was $2.83 in the five-county area, up 2 cents from Friday.

South Jersey's diesel average is $2.50, down 1 cent from Friday. The national diesel average is $2.63, up 1 cent from Friday.

Meanwhile, oil prices fell to near $68 a barrel over concerns over a weak U.S. economy and the dollar's rise, which tends to pull investors away from commodities.

Benchmark crude for July delivery fell $1.42 to $68.13 a barrel by mid-afternoon in Europe in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Friday, it dropped $1.82 to settle at $69.55

The July contract expires later today. The August contract dropped $1.46 to $68.56.

Crude rose to an eight-month intraday high of $73.23 a barrel earlier this month on investor optimism that the U.S. economy, suffering through its worst recession in decades, may grow by the end of the year.

However, recent economic data have been mixed and reflect an economy still struggling to right itself. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 3 percent last week.

"Oil may have peaked in the short-term," said Victor Shum, an energy analyst with consultancy Purvin & Gertz in Singapore. "The market is overripe for a correction. Eventually the laws of supply and demand will re-exert themselves."