The Director of Public Affairs at CAA National said that the average national gasoline price has dropped by about 30 cents since last month, but the price has not fallen to the lowest level of the 136.5 cents average recorded on December 9, 2021.

Christine Darblees said that gasoline prices are driven by a number of factors including seasonality, geopolitical conflicts, supply and demand, and weather changes, adding that gasoline prices are expected to remain relatively low in the next two weeks, as they may rise again due to increased demand with the approach of Christmas, and drivers should take advantage of the price drop as they may see prices rise again soon.

Also, according to CAA's gas price tracking, the average prices across Ontario are about 140 cents, down from 142 on Wednesday and 173 a month ago.

In Quebec, prices dropped to 151 from about 154 the previous day and 183 a month ago.

Meanwhile, in Saskatchewan, prices dropped slightly to 146 cents, while Manitoba saw a smaller decrease of less than one cent to 152 cents.

Gas prices also slightly decreased in British Columbia to 158 cents on Thursday from 160 cents the previous day and 191 a month ago.

Alberta was the only province where the gasoline price tracking device of the Civil Aviation Authority showed an increase at the pump, as prices rose to 133 cents on Thursday from 132 cents on Wednesday.

In the same context, the Alberta government recently provided a temporary relief on gas tax by suspending the collection of the provincial fuel tax on gasoline and diesel between January 1 and June 30 of next year.

On October 1, the province said it would re-impose a tax of 4.5 cents per liter, still far from the usual 13 cents.

In addition, the Ontario government said it intends to enact legislation that would leave the tax exemption that reduces gas prices by 5.7 cents per liter in place until the end of 2023. The reduction came into effect on July 1 and was scheduled to end on December 1.