Trucking news and briefs for Wednesday, April 13, 2022:
For the second week in a row, the national average for diesel fuel has decreased, according to the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration. The EIA also released on Tuesday its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), which includes a forecast for prices during the upcoming summer.
During the week ending April 11, fuel prices fell by 7.1 cents nationally to an average of $5.073 per gallon — nearly 18 cents lower than the peak in prices of $5.25 per gallon seen during the week ending March 14.
EIA, in its monthly STEO report, said that while there is a great deal of uncertainty in the forecast due to a number of factors, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, diesel prices should settle to an average of $4.57 per gallon during the summer.
Diesel prices averaged $4.30 a gallon in the first quarter of 2022, and EIA projects a $4.82 per gallon average through the second quarter, followed by a significant dip in the third quarter to $4.32 per gallon for a summer seasonal average of $4.57.
During the most recent week, prices fell in all regions, with the most significant decrease occurring in New England, where prices dropped an average of 10.2 cents per gallon.
California continues to be the only part of the country with prices averaging higher than $6/gallon at $6.223. The region with the next-highest average is the Central Atlantic, at $5.291 per gallon.
