National Average Price of Diesel Falls for Sixth Week, Slipping 1.1¢ to $2.832

The national average price of diesel declined 1.1 cents to $2.832 per gallon, marking its sixth consecutive weekly decrease, the Department of Energy reported July 6.

Diesel is $1.081 cheaper than a year ago, DOE said after its weekly survey of filling stations.

Gasoline declined 0.8 cent to $2.793 a gallon, leaving it 88.5 cents below a year ago, DOE reported.

The price of diesel actually rose in some Western regions, including Rocky Mountain (0.9 cent) and both West Coast and California by 0.1 cent.

The biggest drop was in the Central Atlantic at 2.1 cents.

Over the six-week period beginning May 25, diesel has fallen by 82 cents. The last time the national average was lower than this was April 27. It matches the year's longest streak of falling prices, when the cost fell $1.33 over the six-week period of March 9-April 20.

Brent oil slid below $60 a barrel for the first time since April amid mounting concern about economic stability in Europe and Asia, Bloomberg News reported. Oil last week slumped the most since March amid speculation that the Greek crisis prompted investors to eschew riskier assets.

“We’ve got a toxic brew for the crude-oil bulls,” Bob Yawger, director of the futures division at Mizuho Securities USA Inc. in New York, told Bloomberg News. “There’s a lot of news out there, and all of it is negative for the oil market.”

Gasoline futures for August delivery decreased 9.1 cents, or 4.5%, to $1.943 a gallon in New York. The average price for gasoline at the pump declined 0.2 cent to $2.765 on July 5, according to Heathrow, Florida-based AAA, the nation’s biggest motoring group.