After six consecutive weeks of rising prices, the national average retail price of a gallon of diesel fell 3.3 cents to $3.094 for the week ending Monday, May 17. Still, this week’s price is 86.3 cents higher than the same week last year, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
All regions tracked by the DOE saw price decreases. The biggest decrease, 4.5 cents, was found on the Gulf Coast, where prices fell to $3.042, which was the nation’s least expensive diesel by region. The smallest decrease, 1.2 cents, was found in the Rocky Mountains, where prices fell to $3.157. The nation’s most expensive diesel by region, $3.232, was found in the Central Atlantic, where prices fell 1.4 cents.
California, which the DOE tracks separately for its weekly update, saw a price decrease of 3.1 cents to $3.238; still, that price is 88.4 cents higher than the same week last year.
The DOE’s latest monthly short-term energy outlook projects that diesel will average $3.05 this year and $3.20 in 2011; last year, diesel averaged $2.46 a gallon.
