Diesel Drops 6.2¢ to $4.059 in Eighth Straight Decline
The national average price of diesel fuel fell for an eighth straight week, dropping 6.2 cents to $4.059 a gallon, the Department of Energy said Monday.
Diesel has plunged 70.5 cents in the past two months since setting a record $4.769 on July 14, but is $1.135 higher than the same week last year, according to DOE figures.
Gasoline, meanwhile, fell for a ninth straight week, declining 3.2 cents to $3.648 a gallon, , leaving the price 46.6 cents lower than the $4.114 record set July 7 but 83 cents higher than the same week last year.
Oil fell more than $9 last week from the previous Friday, closing the week at $106.23 a barrel as Hurricane Gustav spared Gulf of Mexico oil rigs substantial damage.
Crude futures gained just 11 cents Monday after earlier rising on concerns that Hurricane Ike, which passed over Cuba Monday, would move through the Gulf this week and reach the refinery-rich Texas-Louisiana border by the weekend, Bloomberg reported.
Diesel fell in all five regions, led by a 9.2-cent drop on the West Coast, to $4.156 a gallon, DOE said. Both the Midwest and Gulf Coast declined to $4.015, the lowest regional price.
Each week, DOE surveys about 350 diesel filling stations to compile a national snapshot average price.
