National average for diesel nears $3

The average price of a gallon of on-highway diesel went up 2.3 cents to $2.996 per gallon for the week ending Monday, Jan. 8. This marks the third consecutive increase after three weeks of decreases and the highest prices since Jan. 12, 2015, when diesel was $3.053.

Diesel prices went up in nine of 10 regions in the United States, according to the Energy Information Administration. The largest average increase was in the New England region, where prices at the pump went up 6.7 cents per gallon. Prices went down seven-tenths of a cent in the Rocky Mountain region, the only decrease in the nation.

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

• U.S. – $2.996, up 2.3 cents
• East Coast – $3.025, up 4.5 cents
• New England – $3.077, up 6.7 cents
• Central Atlantic – $3.209, up 5.8 cents
• Lower Atlantic – $2.887, up 3.3 cents
• Midwest – $2.947, up 1.2 cents
• Gulf Coast – $2.785, up 1.1 cents
• Rocky Mountain – $2.974, down seven-tenths of a cent
• West Coast – $3.394, up 3.3 cents
• West Coast less California – $3.087, up 1.4 cents
• California – $3.638, up 4.8 cents

According to ProMiles, the average retail price at truck stops was $2.951 on Monday morning, a 2.1-cent increase 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 $3.026, with truckers in California paying an average of $3.677 per gallon, the highest in the nation. Truckers in Oklahoma are paying a national low of $2.744 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. Half of states are reporting average prices above $3, unchanged from last week. No states have reported average diesel prices below $2 since April 27, 2016.

AAA has indexed diesel prices at $2.905 for Monday, 37.2 cents more expensive than this time last year and 6.5 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 February delivery was trading at $61.51 at noon CDT on Monday, a $1.14 increase from last week and a 7-cent increase from its last settlement price. The price of Brent crude oil for March settlement was listed at $67.66, a $1.09 increase from a week ago and a 4-cent increase from its last settlement price.

According to Reuters, oil prices showed minimal movement on Monday amid political tensions in OPEC countries combined with analysts predicting higher U.S. oil production. Over the past week, oil prices have reached their highest since May 2015.