NEW YORK — Consumers grousing about soaring gas prices often focus on the big oil companies and anyone else who might profit when it costs more at the pump. But one culprit that doesn't always get fingered when prices rise — a weak dollar — could draw more attention in the coming year.

The dollar's slide against other major currencies in recent years has helped drive up prices for energy and food and in turn contributed to the economic hardship some consumers face. A further drop in the dollar in 2008 could spell more trouble.

Dave Minucci listens to the chatter on Wall Street about the flagging dollar but doesn't have to look far to cast his own assessment. A recent home heating bill was $120 higher than at the same time last year. But Minucci doesn't blame lower temperatures; the chill he feels is from higher energy prices and a weaker dollar.

He sees what many Americans may not realize: With commodities from oil to natural gas to grain to meat priced in dollars and becoming more expensive as the greenback falls, consumers have to take more out of their wallets to simply buy the same amount of goods. And a lower dollar can also raise the cost of imported goods — with the increase often passed along to consumers.

"I think we're in trouble with the weak dollar," said Minucci, who works in the Capital Markets Finance group at JPMorgan Chase.

The dollar has fallen because of concerns among investors worldwide about the U.S. economy, especially since a cascade of home mortgages has soured in the past year. And the dollar's slide itself has further eroded confidence among some investors who question whether currencies like the euro will be better able to hold their value in the coming years.

The volatility of the currency markets makes it impossible to predict the dollar's course in 2008, though many observers aren't laying down big bets on its recovery.

Consumers are likely to notice a further pullback because it already costs more to stock the refrigerator these days. Since the start of 2007, milk prices are up 23 percent, while the cost of a dozen eggs has risen more than 40 percent.

Overall inflation is running at 5.6 percent, largely due to sharply higher energy costs as oil approached $100 a barrel. But the costs of food, clothes and medical care are have also increased.

Of course it's not just a weaker dollar that's to blame for rising prices. There is surging demand for food and energy in China and other developing countries where industrialization is propelling seismic economic shifts.

Minucci thinks people are too quick to blow off concerns about an anemic dollar as irrelevant to their daily lives.

But considering the numbers can be startling. The dollar has fallen 11 percent against the euro since the start of 2007 and 24 percent against the 13-nation currency since the beginning of 2006.

Sean Hannon, an investment adviser, shares Minucci's concerns and believes the dollar will continue to decline and put pressure on prices.

"From the U.S. consumer's perspective everything we need is going be more expensive. Our quality of life is slowly going to decline. And it's just sapping the American economy," he said.

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