Diesel Price Surges 3.9 Cents

The national average price of diesel fuel rose 3.9 cents last week to $1.440 per gallon, the Department of Energy said Monday.

The increase followed two straight weeks of falling prices. It was only the third rise in the past nine weeks.

Diesel fuel is the primary fuel for trucking, and increases at the pump can impact the bottom line of trucking companies. Prior to this report, diesel had declined 6.8 cents since Oct. 21.

DOE also U.S. retail gasoline prices rose 3.8 cents last week to $140.1 per gallon. It was the biggest jump since April.

While diesel prices only rose 0.7 cent in the Rocky Mountains, DOE's other four geographic regions reported increases between 3.5 cents and 4.3 cents.

On Monday, Rep. Bill Tauzin asked DOE to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help supply refiners cut off from Venezuelan oil by a strike in that country, Bloomberg reported.

The three-week old strike has caused a sharp rise in crude oil prices, which Energy Information Administration analyst Jacob Bournazian told Transport Topics last week would lead to a rise in diesel prices.

Each week, the EIA surveys diesel prices at 350 filling stations to compile a snapshot of the national price.