The price of gas is starting to go up again. Only this time, it is going up much faster than expected.
Experts believe the sudden spike is due to a combination of factors, including worries over Israel’s attacks on Gaza, OPEC’s recent efforts to cut back production, the halting of Russian natural gas shipments to Europe and problems at a San Diego area refinery.
Last week, aaa.com, which constantly updates the price of gas for the state of Utah and elsewhere, reported that the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in Utah was at $1.36.
The average price for Davis County was roughly $1.26. That number has gone up 10 cents or more in some fill-up stations in less than a week.
“It’s frustrating,” said Gary East, who was filling up his vehicle at the Costco in West Bountiful. “But it’s a lot better than what I was paying last July.”
July reported the highest average gas price in the history of Utah, posting as high as $4.22 in some Davis County stations. They were considerably higher in other parts of the state.
“There could be a number of reasons for such an increase in price in just under a week,” said Rolayne Fairclough, AAA Utah spokesperson. “The price of crude oil has gone up, the price of compressed natural gas is starting to rise, and the demand for oil is going up as well.”
As of Tuesday, the price for light, sweet crude oil closed at $48.87 a barrel. That number is almost $20 more than it was just a month ago when the price for crude was hovering just below the $30 mark.
“I think some people didn’t expect the price of gas to come up so quickly,” said Hillary Farnesworth as she filled her tank at the local Sinclair station. “As long as it doesn’t climb to that $4 range it was in July I’m fine with paying a little more for gas.
“Just don’t overdo the rising price in gas; otherwise, people are going to be unsettled about the prices again.”
Compared to other states; however, the price of gas on average isn’t that bad. According to fuelgaugereport.com, Utah’s average price for gas is $1.50 per gallon. Only Montana ($1.47) and Wyoming ($1.42) are lower.
The highest price for a gallon of gas is in Alaska, posting at $2.53 as of Wednesday. Hawaii is the only other state above the $2 mark.
“This is an ongoing pattern,” said Fairclough. “As soon as the weather gets better, which should be soon, the price of gas goes up.”
