With spring officially sprung, diesel prices have yet to heat up like their gasoline counterparts. In the week of March 25, the U.S. Energy Information Administration recorded an average U.S. on-highway diesel fuel price of $4.034 per gallon, less than a cent higher than last week and 9 cents cheaper than last year.
The rest of the country saw various, if minimal, price increases and decreases as well, with price swings not exceeding 3 cents. The Midwest saw the largest price hike of 3 cents to $3.986 per gallon, which is 1 cent higher than this time last year. California’s diesel prices also increased from both last week and last year, at 2 cents and 5 cents, respectively, with a total cost of $5.224 per gallon. Otherwise, the Rocky Mountain region’s prices also rose by 1 cent to $3.986, and the West Coast both with and without California’s diesel prices hiked up by 2 cents.
For regions that saw their diesel prices decrease, the East Coast overall saw prices fall by less than a cent to $4.125 per gallon, while the Central Atlantic and Lower Atlantic sub-regions specifically decreased by less than a cent. The Gulf Coast experienced the largest price drop at 2 cents to reach $3.717 per gallon. With this small price decrease, the Gulf Coast keeps its title as the cheapest place for diesel fuel, beating out the Midwest and Rocky Mountain regions by 27 cents. On the other hand, California remains the most expensive state for diesel at $5.224 per gallon.
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By comparison, the AAA motor club reported that its current diesel price average was 1 cent higher than the EIA’s estimate of $4.042 per gallon. This price is about 2 cents more expensive than last week’s $4.027 per gallon but 21 cents cheaper than last year’s $4.258.
Gasoline still on the rise, Midwest may see some relief
As has been the case since mid-January, the national average for regular gasoline prices has continued to rise at a higher rate than diesel prices. This week, the EIA logged gas prices at $3.523, 7 cents higher than a week ago and 10 cents higher than this time last year. No region across the country escaped this increase, with price hikes ranging from 1-12 cents since last week.
Prices rose the least in the Lower Atlantic sub-region, which only experienced an increase of 1 cent to $3.357, while the East Coast overall only rose 3 cents to $3.388. On the other end of the spectrum, gas prices rose the most for the Rocky Mountain area, increasing 12 cents in total for a full price of $3.292 per gallon. Both the West Coast without California and the Midwest also saw their gas prices increase, both by 9 cents, to reach $4.088 and $3.406 per gallon. But once all is said and done, the Gulf Coast is still the cheapest place to buy gas at $3.176 per gallon, while California is still the most expensive at $4.801.
AAA logged gas prices that were 1 cent higher than the EIA’s at $3.534 per gallon. This number is 7 cents more than AAA’s prices for last week and 9 cents more expensive than the organization’s price reading of $3.440 for this time last year. This increase could be due to the continued rise in oil prices, but the motor club also noted that the Midwest could get a small gas price break soon, since the BP Whiting refinery in Indiana has come back online after shutting down at the start of February.
“Gas prices are a lot like seasonal temperatures,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson. “They start to rise with the arrival of spring. And the national average for gas is now higher than a year ago, which we have not seen since late December.”
This article was originally published on FleetOwner.com.
