Diesel prices maintain a slight downward trajectory

The average price of a gallon of on-highway diesel went down 1.2 cents to $2.91 per gallon for the week ending Monday, Dec. 11. This marks the second consecutive decrease after a short-lived increase two weeks ago.

Diesel prices went down in nine of 10 regions in the United States, according to the Energy Information Administration. The largest average decrease was in the California region, where prices at the pump went down 3.4 cents per gallon. Prices went up three-tenths of a cent in the New England region, the only increase in the nation.

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

• U.S. – $2.91, down 1.2 cents
• East Coast – $2.901, down three-tenths of a cent
• New England – $2.90, up three-tenths of a cent
• Central Atlantic – $3.06, down two-tenths of a cent
• Lower Atlantic – $2.788, down six-tenths of a cent
• Midwest – $2.863, down 1.4 cents
• Gulf Coast – $2.705, down eight-tenths of a cent
• Rocky Mountain – $2.991, down 2.8 cents
• West Coast – $3.344, down 2.9 cents
• West Coast less California – $3.072, down 3.4 cents
• California – $3.56, down 2.5 cents

According to ProMiles, the average retail price at truck stops was $2.862 on Monday morning, a 1.4-cent decrease from last week.

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.

TruckMiles.com listed the daily average price for Monday at $2.923, with truckers in California paying an average of $3.596 per gallon, the highest in the nation. Truckers in Oklahoma are paying a national low of $2.632 per gallon, according to the site. No states in the lower 48 states have been listed in excess of $4 per gallon at the pump since Dec. 4, 2014. Fourteen states are reporting average prices above $3, one more than last week. No states have reported average diesel prices below $2 since April 27, 2016.

AAA has indexed diesel prices at $2.837 for Monday, 40.9 cents more expensive than this time last year and 1.4 cents higher than a month ago.

In separate energy news, according to the New York Mercantile Exchange, light sweet crude (also known as West Texas Intermediate) for January delivery was trading at $57.79 at noon CDT on Monday, a 32-cent increase from last Monday and a 43-cent increase from its last settlement price. The price of Brent crude oil for February settlement was listed at $64.59, a $2.14 increase from last Monday and a $1.19 increase from its last settlement price.

According to Reuters, Monday’s increase was prompted by the shutdown of a North Sea pipeline. Investors had a watchful eye on commodities after a terror-related explosion took place at a Port Authority Bus Terminal near New York City’s Time Square on Monday morning.