Diesel Jumps 2.4¢ to $2.531 a Gallon in Fifth Consecutive Increase
The U.S. average retail price of diesel climbed 2.4 cents to $2.531 as the cost of crude broke past $50 a barrel as expectations rose that supplies would tighten further, experts said.
Diesel now costs 18.3 cents more than it did a year ago, when it was $2.348 a gallon, the Department of Energy said July 31.
Prices for trucking’s main fuel rose in all regions.
It was diesel’s fifth consecutive increase, totaling 6.6 cents.
The U.S. average price for regular gasoline rose 4 cents to $2.352 a gallon. The cost is 19.3 cents more than it was a year ago, DOE's Energy Information Administration said.
Weekly gasoline prices rose in every region, EIA said.
Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed at $50.17 per barrel July 31 compared with $46.34 on July 24.
It was the first time crude closed above $50 since May 24, when the price was $51.36.
A number of oil-related factors were at play, Bloomberg News recently reported:
• Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates pledged to ship less crude.
• Halliburton Co. said shale explorers are “tapping the brakes.”
• Producers from ConocoPhillips to Statoil ASA slashed spending plans.
• U.S. oil stockpiles [the week of July 21] fell to the lowest since January.
• Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said he sees the market rebalancing more quickly in the second half of the year.
