Federal report shows diesel fuel prices rising

The U.S. average diesel fuel price went up a cent from one week ago, according to a weekly federal report, to a national average of $2.396 per gallon.

In fact, according to the Energy Information Administration, the average price for a gallon of diesel fuel increased for every region and subregion.

The increases ranged from a tenth of a cent up to nearly 2 cents on the West Coast.

One year ago the average U.S. price was 70.9 cents per gallon more, according to the EIA.

Average U.S. price for a gallon of diesel fuel as reported by the EIA:

• U.S. – $2.396, up 1 cent.
• East Coast – $2.501, up nine-tenths of a cent.
• New England – $2.629, up 1.4 cents.
• Central Atlantic – $2.672, up three-fifths of a cent.
• Lower Atlantic – $2.359, up 1 cent.
• Midwest – $2.24, up 1.4 cents.
• Gulf Coast – $2.172, up one-tenth of a cent.
• Rocky Mountain – $2.351, up 1.1 cents.
• West Coast – $2.918, up 1.8 cents.
• West Coast without California – $2.578, up 1.8 cents.
• California – $3.198, up 1.7 cents.

ProMiles.com tells a different story. It reports the average retail price for diesel fuel per gallon in the U.S. on Monday, June 8, dipped slightly from the report one week before.

ProMiles, the software company that maintains the websites ProMiles.com and TruckMiles.com, offers 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.

The U.S. average diesel fuel price per gallon is 74.9 cents less than one year ago, according to ProMiles.com.

According to ProMiles data, most regional decreases were a fraction of a cent except for the Rocky Mountain region, where the drop was 1.2 cents.

Averages for two regions increased slightly: the Midwest and California.

Here are the average U.S. prices for a gallon of diesel reported for each region by ProMiles.com:

• U.S. – $2.259, down three-tenths of a cent.
• East Coast – $2.439 down one-fifth of a cent.
• New England – $2.61, down one-tenth of a cent.
• Central Atlantic – $2.61, down two-fifths of a cent.
• Lower Atlantic – $2.318, down two-fifths of a cent.
• Midwest – $2.164, up one-tenth of a cent.
• Gulf Coast – $2.123, down four-fifths of a cent.
• Rocky Mountain – $2.282, down 1.2 cents.
• West Coast – $2.659, down two-fifths of a cent.
• West Coast without California – $2.453, down a half cent.
• California – $3.057, up three-tenths of a cent.

Click here to view ProMiles fuel data averaged by state.

AAA reported the retail average U.S. price per gallon of diesel fuel at $2.414 for Monday, June 8.

A week previous the average retail U.S. price for a gallon of diesel fuel was $2.41 per gallon.

A month previous, AAA reported $2.423 per gallon of diesel, and a year ago $3.055 per gallon.

The highest recorded retail average U.S. diesel fuel price was $4.845 per gallon on July 17, 2008, according to AAA.

Last week’s diesel fuel report is here.