Drop in Utah gas prices bucks national trend

The price of a gallon of unleaded gas has gone down in Utah, making it the only state without an increase over the last month.

The average gallon in Utah cost $2.60 on Tuesday, 1 cent lower than in December, according to AAA Utah.

"Utah is really an anomaly right now, as gas prices in the rest of the country have followed the price of oil rather than the fundamental supply and demand forces," said AAA Utah spokeswoman Rolayne Fairclough.

"The price of oil has risen roughly 20 percent over the course of this past month, and gasoline prices have followed, even with the seasonal low demand and continuing robust supplies."

Investors have flocked to oil since the U.S. dollar has been weak. Oil is traded in U.S. dollars, and when the price of the euro or other currencies is higher than the dollar, oil becomes cheap and popular with traders. Oil has recently reached 15-month highs, Fairclough said.

Other factors could be at play with the high oil price, Fairclough said, such as traders' enthusiasm about the economic recovery or the cold snap across North America that has increased demand in heating oil.

Heating oil is produced in the same refineries that produce gasoline.

Typically, in the winter, fewer Utahns travel, which makes demand for gas fall. Still, the price of gasoline in Utah is 98 cents higher than it was at the same time last year.

The gasoline price cited by AAA is an average and may not match the price at your corner fueling station. Prices vary by city.

In Salt Lake City, AAA reported an average price Tuesday for unleaded gas of $2.54 a gallon, 2 cents lower than last month.

In St. George, gas was $2.74, while in Moab and Vernal, it was $2.64 a gallon. In Logan, it was $2.55; in Provo, it was $2.56; and in Ogden, it was $2.53.

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