Oil prices plunged more than 8% Thursday as weak economic data and a strengthening dollar drove crude to its biggest one-day drop since April 2009.
The main U.S. oil contract for June delivery settled down $9.44, or 8.6%, to $99.80 a barrel. That's its lowest level since mid-March and marks its biggest one-day percentage drop in two years. Brent crude, the European benchmark, fell $10.73 to $110.46 a barrel.
The drop hasn't translated into lower gasoline prices though. The national average price for a gallon of gasoline rose for the forty-fourth straight day to $3.985 on Thursday, according to motorist group AAA.
Lower crude prices usually translate into lower gasoline prices, but the effect is delayed.