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Dive Brief:
- Highway diesel prices hit a two-year low below $3.66 a gallon, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data released on Monday.
- The recent record continued a bearish push that has unfolded over the past three weeks. The streak eclipsed a previous low set on July 3, 2023, for the period.
- Current prices are well below a January forecast from the agency, with a Midwestern region posting the largest week-to-week drop of 8 minutes.
Dive Insight:
The price of diesel, down 6.8 cents week-on-week, is a factor affecting the ability of some fleets to operate, with inflation continuing to threaten consumer standards and persistently soft demand causing pain for fleets.
Rates were down about 7 cents per mile from a year ago Saturday, pushing operating margins below breakeven, DAT iQ principal analyst Dean Croke told Trucking Dive in an email.
“For a long-haul market carrier, they lose the equivalent of $0.04/mile ($4,000/year) with fuel at $3.73/gal and dry truckloads at $2.01/mile,” he wrote . “This time last year they were breaking even.”