National diesel average sets a new record high, for the week of March 7, reports EIA

The national average price per gallon for diesel gasoline climbed up for the ninth consecutive week, with this week’s tally setting a new all-time record, according to data issued this week by the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The national average, for the week of March 7, came in at $4.849 per gallon, a new high, according to EIA data, topping the previous record, of $4.764, which was set the week of July 14, 2008.

This marks the fourth consecutive week of the national diesel average topping the $4 per gallon mark, with the national average seeing a $1.236 cumulative gain over the last nine weeks of sequential increases.

And this week’s average saw a $0.745-cent increase sequentially, and it represented a $1.706 annual gain, too.

For the week of February 28, the national average increased $0.049, to $4.104 per gallon, eclipsing the $4 per gallon marks for the third consecutive week. This comes on the heels of a $0.036-cent increase, to $4.055, for the week of February 21, and a $0.68-cent increase, to $4.019 per gallon, for the week of February 14.

Prior to these last four weeks, the national diesel average had not been above the $4 per gallon mark since the week of March 17, 2014, when it came in at $4.003 per gallon. Prior to that, the national diesel average cracked the $4 per gallon mark the week of March 25, 2013, when it came in at $4.006 per gallon.

What’s more, the $0.745 sequential increase marks the highest single weekly increase, far surpassing the $0.109-cent increase, for the week of October 11, 2021, which was the highest gain, since September 4, 2017, which saw a 15.3-cent increase, due to Hurricane Harvey.  

This week’s national average is up $1.706 annually, well above the $1.032 annual spread for the week of February 28.

West Texas Intermediate Crude oil is currently trading at $127.39 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The increase on global oil prices, driven by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, has become a major concern in global energy markets while significantly increasing diesel prices for shippers and carriers.

What’s more, various media reports observed that the White House is expected to halt Russian oil from being imported into the U.S. “to continue to hold Russia accountable for its unprovoked and unjustified war on Ukraine,” according to a statement it issued.

The New York Times reported that the move would shut off the relatively small flow of oil into the United States, which receives less than 10% of its energy resources from Russia.

And a Wall Street Journal report said that the current acceleration in prices was driven by traders, shippers, and financiers “shunning Russian oil, removing millions of barrels of oil from global supplies.”

The WSJ report added that the United States’ ability to refine gasoline has seen a significant drop-off over the course of the pandemic, having lost about one million barrels of daily petroleum-refining capacity since early 2020, when the U.S. was producing about 19 million barrels of refined petroleum a day.