Retail Diesel Fuel Oil Prices
Notes:
- Along with heating oil prices, the distillate supply squeeze has severely impacted diesel fuel prices, especially in the Northeast. Retail diesel price data are available sooner than residential heating oil data. This graph shows that diesel prices turned the corner sometime after February 7 and are heading down.
- Retail diesel fuel prices nationally, along with those of most other petroleum prices, increased steadily through most of 1999. Prices jumped dramatically (by over 11 cents per gallon) in the third week of January, and rose 2 or more cents a week through February 7.
- The increases were much more rapid in the Northeast. From January 17 through February 7, diesel fuel prices in New England rose nearly 68 cents per gallon, or 47 percent. Prices in the Mid-Atlantic region rose about 58 cents per gallon (42 percent) in the same period, compared to an increase of 16 cents in the national average.
- Prices are now falling faster in the Northeast than in the other areas. In New England, prices fell 19 cents per gallon from February 7 through February 14, nearly the same amount the following week, and another 10 cents through February 28.