It has been one of the big national headlines this week: gas prices down more than 20 cents per gallon on average. But, before you get excited - Arizona is not exactly following the trend.
Our state is more than 30 cents above the national average and residents are also paying 40 cents more than this time last year.
The Arizona average is parked at $2.75 per gallon.
Prices are technically going down, just not at the speed that anyone wants.
Michelle Donati with AAA Arizona said we are seeing a 5-cent dip week over week. But, it is still not enough to catch us up to other states, who are accelerating their price drops.
"Arizona is not alone in this," Donati explained. "So, it's really a regional issue, so if you look at the entire western region, we hold the most expensive gas prices in the country and Arizona, fortunately, we hold the lowest of those highest averages, which is I guess, a little bit of a silver lining."
As for why Arizona is parked in these higher prices, Donati said it has to do with inventory issues within our region.
"A few weeks ago, there (was) some tightness in inventories," Donati described. "So, other regions across the country saw inventories grow, the west saw inventories drop, so those other regions got a little bit of a head start when it comes to these price decreases, so we're really just a little bit late to the game."
Donati said, typically, prices do drop in the winter. She said there is no crystal ball for gas prices, but the expectation is that Arizona will keep falling into 2019.
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