Diesel prices dropped again this week, with the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) reporting that the average price per gallon fell 0.7 cents to $3.814 per gallon.
During the nine-week stretch of declining prices, diesel prices have fallen a cumulative 10.6 cents and are down 20.7 cents since the week of March 10, when the average price per gallon was at $4.021.
What’s more, this week’s price stands as the lowest since July 1, 2013, when it was at $3.817 per gallon. And on an annual basis the average price per gallon is down 16.7 cents.
Diesel prices have been down in 21 of the last 25 weeks.
In its recently-issued Short Term Energy Outlook, the EIA pegged the average price for diesel prices in 2014 at $3.89 and $3.87 in 2015, with crude oil at $100.45 per barrel in 2014 and $96.08 in 2015.
As LM has reported, with prices continuing to hover around the $4 per gallon mark adjusting budgets is only part of the solution when it comes to dealing—and living—with fuel price fluctuation, according to shippers.
In some cases they look for hedge diesel prices when it is applicable, shippers have told LM. This involves committing to a certain price on fuel at which pay to a certain rate at which point it is frozen at that rate for the shipper. And it also requires shippers to be focused on keeping their drivers on the road as much they can and being profitable and
not in detention.
Other steps being taken by shippers to combat high fuel prices include things like focusing more on utilization and efficiency by doing things like driving empty miles out of transportation networks.