In The News

Diesel prices reach record low for the year

The average price of a gallon of on-highway diesel decreased five-tenths of a cent to $3.853 per gallon for the week ending Monday, Aug. 4. That is the lowest price this year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Diesel price averages went down in all eight of 10 regions in the U.S., according to the EIA. The largest average decrease came in the New England region, where prices at the pump went down by 2.5 cents per gallon. Prices went up two-tenths of a cent in the West Coast less California region, the largest increase in the nation.

Following are the average prices by region as reported by the EIA:

U.S. – $3.853, down five-tenths of a cent East Coast – $3.906, down four-tenths of a cent New England – $4.019, down 2.5 cents Central Atlantic – $3.989, down four-tenths of a cent Lower Atlantic – $3.817, no change Midwest – $3.798, down three-tenths of a cent Gulf Coast – $3.754, down 1.3 cents Rocky Mountain – $3.877, down 1.1 cents West Coast – $4.016, down one-tenth of a cent West Coast less California – $3.930, up two-tenths of a cent California – $4.087, down three-tenths of a cent

ProMiles, the software company that maintains the websites ProMiles.com and TruckMiles.com, continues to offer its own weekly fuel price information. The company’s fuel price data are presented in the same format used by the EIA in the agency’s weekly reports. The prices include a national average as well as regional averages, and comparisons to the previous week and the previous year.

A key difference between the EIA and ProMiles reporting is the type and number of fueling stations the company surveys in order to calculate its averages. While EIA surveys 400 truck stops and convenience stores nationwide, ProMiles uses its direct feed from thousands of truck stops to develop its averages.

According to ProMiles, the average retail price at truck stops was $3.787 on Monday morning, a 1.7 cent decrease from last week.

TruckMiles.com listed the daily average price for Monday at $3.848, with truckers in Connecticut paying an average of $4.355 per gallon, the highest in the nation. Truckers in Missouri are paying a national low of $3.616 per gallon, according to the site. Truckers in five of the Lower 48 states are paying in excess of $4 per gallon at the pump, which is a record low for the year.

In separate energy news, according to the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude (also known as West Texas Intermediate) for September delivery was trading at $98.24 on Monday afternoon, a $3.45 decrease from last Monday and a 36-cent increase from its last trading price. The price of Brent crude oil for September settlement was listed at $105.39, a $2.29 decrease from last Monday and a 55-cent increase from its last trading price.

According to Bloomberg, WTI is trading at its lowest price in almost six months, despite tensions across the globe. AAA has indexed diesel prices at $3.835 for Monday, while regular gasoline is at its lowest since March 17, according to AAA.

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