Diesel Falls Again, Declining 4.2¢, to $4.085; Gasoline Falls 5.2¢ to $3.87 a Gallon
Diesel fell for the third time in four weeks, doubling last week’s decline to a 4.2-cent drop to $4.085 a gallon, the Department of Energy said Monday.
Gasoline, meanwhile, fell for the third straight week, down 5.2 cents to $3.87, DOE said following its weekly survey of filling stations.
The diesel decline — the biggest since Dec. 19 — leaves it 1.3 cents below the same week a year ago.
It was the first time diesel dropped below its year-ago level since Nov. 16, 2009, and the first time for gasoline since Oct. 19, 2009, according to DOE records.
Gasoline’s decline was also the most since mid-December and Monday’s price is 0.9-cent below its year-ago level.
Gas had gained 55.2 cents in 10 straight weekly increases before declining 7.1 cents in the past three weeks.
Diesel’s $4.148 national average price two weeks ago was the highest since trucking’s main fuel was $4.208 on Aug. 18, 2008.
Despite the recent declines, diesel has gained a cumulative 30.2 cents since its year-low $3.783 price on Jan. 2.
Crude oil fell 77 cents Monday to finish at $103.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, Bloomberg reported.
Each week, DOE surveys about 350 diesel filling stations to compile a national snapshot average price.
