Diesel heads up for fifth straight week, reports EIA

Diesel prices rose for the fifth straight week, with the average price per gallon up 2.8 cents to $4.017 per gallon, according to the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Over the course of the last five weeks, the average price per gallon has risen a cumulative 14.4 cents.

Prior to these two weeks on rising prices, diesel dropped a cumulative 3.7 cents over the previous two weeks, when prices fell 1.3 cents and 2.4 cents, respectively. Those two weeks of declines were preceded by three weeks of gains for a cumulative 3.9 cents. 

And this week’s average price per gallon marks the first time it has eclipsed the $4 per gallon mark since checking in at $4.006 the week of March 25, 2013.

On an annual basis, the average price per gallon is down 14.2 cents compared to $4.159 per gallon from the week of February 25, 2013, which is the highest level for diesel since 2008, when average fuel and oil prices hit all-time highs.

The average price per barrel of crude oil dipped $0.49 to $102.33 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, according to an Associated Press report. The report noted that some analysts expect oil prices to drop in the spring, when many refineries will be carrying out maintenance work, which is temporarily accompanied by lower oil demand.

As prices continue to rise, 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.

As previously reported by LM, 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.