Average Diesel Price Declines Another 1.6 Cents to $2.116

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he average retail price for diesel fuel fell 1.6 cents to $2.116 per gallon, the U.S. Department of Energy reported Monday.

Commercial trucking's main fuel has now declined 9.6 cents over the past four weeks since setting a record $2.212 on Oct. 25. Diesel is at its lowest point since $2.092 on Oct. 11

However, it is still 62.5 cents higher than a year earlier. Trucking burns about 650 million gallons of gasoline each week.

DOE also said the average retail price of regular gasoline fell 2.1 cents to $1.948 per gallon. Gasoline was 43.6 cents higher than a year earlier.

Trucking burns an estimated 290 million gallons of gasoline each week.

Also Monday, the price of crude oil for January delivery fell 34 cents to $48.55 a barrel at the close of floor trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, Bloomberg reported.

Crude oil did reach $49.55 Monday morning, the highest since Nov. 8. Futures are up 55% in the past year.

DOE said the price of diesel again declined throughout the entire nation, including a 4.5-cent dip on the Rocky Mountain region to $2.17.

Each week, DOE surveys 350 diesel-filling stations to compile a national snapshot price.