Diesel Falls 3.4 Cents to $2.479; Decline Is Fifth Straight
he national average retail price of diesel fuel fell 3.4 cents to $2.479 a gallon, the fifth straight weekly decline, the Department of Energy said Monday.
Since topping out at a record $3.157 a gallon on Oct. 24, the price of trucking's main fuel has declined 67.8 cents but it is still 36.3 cents higher than the same time last year.
Meanwhile, the national average price of regular gasoline also continued to fall, declining another 4.7 cents to $2.154 a gallon, DOE said.
Gasoline is 20.9 cents higher than a year ago, according to DOE figures.
Despite the decline over the past month, diesel supplies have been shorter than gasoline due to fewer imports than gasoline, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday. (Click here for related story.)
Diesel prices fell in all five of its regions and in California, which DOE breaks out separately. The price dropped 4 cents in California to $2.559, while it fell 3.5 on the West Coast to $2.617, the highest regional price.
The Rocky Mountain region, which last week had the highest price, saw its average drop the most this week, down 6.3 cents to $2.591.
The lowest price was the Midwest region, which fell 3.5 cents to $2.442, DOE said. The East Coast’s price fell 2.4 cents to $2.467 and the Gulf Coast region’s price fell 3.5 cents to $2.456.
Each week, DOE surveys 350 diesel filling stations to compile a national snapshot average price.
