Source: EIA

Source: EIA

The price of a gallon of diesel fuel rose by nearly 7 cents last week, continuing a streak of rising prices since the beginning of the year, according to the latest numbers from the Energy Department.

The average price of a gallon of diesel fuel increased 6.8 cents, hitting $2.266 in the U.S. Despite a string of price increases this year, the price is still 58.8 cents cheaper than it was in the same week last year.

The largest price increase by area was in the Midwest where prices rose 7.6 cents. The smallest change was a still-significant 4.3-cent increase in the New England region.

Gas prices followed suit, increasing by 7.8 cents nationally last week. The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline is $2.24, which is 42.4 cents cheaper than it was a year ago.

The largest price increase was in the Lower Atlantic region, where prices rose 11.2 cents for the week. The smallest increase in gas prices was on the West Coast at 3.9 cents per gallon – though the region also has the highest average price per gallon at $2.635.

The price of crude oil fell on May 3, as investors remained worried that oil production was still too high globally and had not yet adjusted to lower demand, according to a MarketWatch report. While crude oil prices have increased significantly since early 2016, demand has remained low as high-consuming markets like China have shown a slowdown in economic growth.

Also, with oil prices rising by as much as 66%, analysts are worried that U.S. shale oil producers might increase output once again, compounding the supply glut.

Originally posted on Trucking Info

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