Diesel Drops Another 1.9¢; Gas Soars to Record $3.103
Diesel’s national average pump price dipped 1.9 cents to $2.773 a gallon, while gasoline jumped 4.9 cents to an all-time record $3.103, the Department of Energy said Monday.
The gasoline average shattered the all-time record of $3.069 set Sept. 5, 2005, immediately following Hurricane Katrina.
Gas has risen in 14 of the past 15 weeks, pausing only for a 0.7-cent dip three weeks ago. Dating back to Jan. 29, it has gained 93.8 cents and is now 15.6 cents higher than a year ago.
Gas jumped 10.3 cents in the Rocky Mountain region and is 35.5 cents higher there than it was a year ago; the Midwest price soared 9.8 cents and is 30.6 cents above last year.
The 1.9-cent diesel price drop, which matched last week’s, was the fourth straight for trucking’s main fuel, which is 14.7 cents lower than the same week a year ago on a nationwide basis. Diesel has declined 10.4 cents since mid-April, DOE figures showed.
Diesel fell in all five DOE regions except the Rocky Mountains, where it crept up 0.3 cent to $2.998.
The price of both fuels fell in California, which DOE breaks out separately from its five national regions. Diesel declined 2.2 cents to $2.952 and gas fell 1.1 cents to $3.45, but those prices were the highest in the country.
Each week, DOE surveys about 350 diesel filling stations to compile a national snapshot average price.
