Motorists are finally getting a break at the gas pumps after a dramatic slide in the price of oil over the last few months.

Government announced new fuel prices yesterday with the price of gasoline slashed by 14 percent.

The announcement means that the maximum price at the pumps for gas is now $1.75, down from $2.03. The price of an average tank of gas for a Class A vehicle with a 35-litre capacity tank would drop almost $10 based on this cut.

Also slashed yesterday were the prices for diesel and kerosene.

Diesel prices were cut eight percent, or 14.3 cents per litre. The maximum retail price for diesel is now $1.65. Kerosene has been reduced to $1.39 per litre from $1.57 — an 11.5 percent cut. Yesterday, the price of crude oil fell to a 16-month low closing at $66.75 per barrel, down from its peak in July of this year at $147.

Falling demand for fuel associated with the global economic slowdown has driven prices steadily downward despite a proposed production cut being considered by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) this week.