Diesel price drops again as New Year approaches

From Transport Topics.

The national average price for a gallon of diesel continued on its downward trend as 2021 drew to a close, falling another 1.1 cents in the Dec. 27 weekly report provided by the Energy Information Administration.

Trucking’s main fuel ended the year at $3.615 a gallon for its sixth straight weekly decline. Back in its first report of 2021, EIA reported the national average at $2.64 a gallon.

The price of diesel dropped in nine of the 10 regions surveyed. Only California saw an increase, by 0.3 cent to $4.771 a gallon. The largest decrease, 2.7 cents, was seen in the Rocky Mountain region, where a gallon now averages $3.704.

Over the previous six weeks, the cost of a gallon of diesel has shed 11.9 cents. It reached its 2021 high of $3.734 on Nov. 15.

The price of regular unleaded gasoline declined last week by two cents to a national average of $3.275 a gallon from $3.295 a week earlier. Over two weeks the price has fallen by four cents from $3.315.

Still, gasoline is $1.032 a gallon more expensive than it was this time last year, analysts said. This is due primarily to a return in demand from lows brought on by the pandemic.

The year closed with another event that threatened fuel supplies, a Dec. 23 explosion and fire that severely damaged the ExxonMobil-owned Baytown Refinery in Harris County, Texas, near Houston. Fortunately, it appears the damage is not as severe as first thought.

See the complete article online at Transport Topics.