Diesel Climbs a Penny to $2.499 a Gallon; Gas Drops 1.5 Cents

he average price of retail diesel fuel rose one cent to $2.499 a gallon, the Department of Energy reported Monday.

Meanwhile, the price of retail gasoline fell 1.5 cents to $2.342, DOE said following its weekly survey of filling stations.

Diesel's uptick followed last week’s 1.7-cent increase, and the price has now risen in four of six weeks this year, trending upward from $2.448 a gallon in late December, DOE figures show.

The price of trucking’s main fuel is 51.6 cents higher than this time last year. That translates to about $343 million in extra costs to the trucking industry for the week over the same week last year, at a burn rate of 665 million gallons a week.

Gasoline’s price is 43.3 cents over last year, meaning the trucking industry is paying about $126 million more than the same week last year, at a burn rate of 290 million gallons.

iesel average prices rose in all five major regions, led by a 2.9-cent jump in the Rocky Mountains, to $2.503 a gallon.

The West Coast had the highest regional average, $2.645, up a half-cent. California, which DOE breaks out separately from its regions, saw its price rise 0.6 cent to $2.739.

he Midwest had the lowest average, at $2.445, rising 1.4 cents over last week’s price. The Gulf Coast’s price rose 0.8 cent to $2.463.

The East Coast’s price fell 0.6 cent, while its New England sub-region saw the only overall decline, falling 0.2 cent to $2.659.

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