Diesel Jumps 15.6¢ to a Record $3.552 a Gallon
The national average price of diesel fuel jumped 15.6 cents to a record $3.552 a gallon, shattering the previous mark set three months ago by 10.8 cents, the Department of Energy said Monday.
The previous record of $3.444 a gallon was set on Nov. 26.
This week’s jump was the biggest since the record 34.6-cent spike in October 2005 following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. That increase pushed diesel to a then-record $3.157.
The biggest gain since then was a 14.6-cent rise Nov. 5, which pushed diesel to a record high at the time of $3.303.
Meanwhile, gasoline gained 8.8 cents to $3.13 a gallon, which was short of the $3.218 record set last May. It was the biggest increase since a 9.8-cent jump on Nov. 12, according to DOE figures.
Crude oil closed at more than $100 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange for the first time last week, finishing the trading day at $100.01 last Tuesday.
This week’s pump-price increase left diesel just over $1 higher than the price a year ago, and $1.08 higher on the East Coast, where the price soared to an average $3.608. In that area’s New England sub-region, the price topped $3.70.
The West Coast had the highest regional average, at $3.609, while California, which DOE breaks out separately, jumped 16.1 cents to $3.672.
Each week, DOE surveys about 350 diesel filling stations to compile a national snapshot average price.
