This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
In a tale of two pumps, gasoline nationally was at $3.50 per gallon Tuesday for the first time this summer after a sharp run-up in July, while prices in Utah were nearly a dime less than a year ago.
The price of gas in the U.S. in July gained 17 cents per gallon, or 5.1 percent. That marked the first monthly increase since March. The nationwide average was last at $3.50 per gallon on June 19.
In Utah, the average cost of a gallon was $3.43 Tuesday, down 16 cents from last month and 8 cents cheaper than a year ago, said AAA Utah.
Drivers nationally had enjoyed a long stretch of declining prices at the pump as oil fell from more than $100 per barrel in March to below $78 by late June. The average price at the pump fell by 60 cents per gallon in about three months. But oil rose 13 percent from its June low on renewed concerns of supply disruptions in the Middle East and the usual increase in demand in the warmer months.
Oil ended July at $88.05 per barrel.