For the 10th week in a row on-highway diesel took a price plunge, showing up Wednesday down 4.4 cents to just above $3 a gallon at $3.077. That was compared with $3.121 December 17.
In all 10 sectors monitored by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, diesel prices dived, with Midwest prices down the most (7.4 cents a gallon) at $2.944.
For a brief period, diesel in all regions was at or above the $3-a-gallon mark, with only the Gulf Coast area showing prices below that occasionally. Now, two other regions have joined in: the Midwest clocked in at $2.944; the Lower Atlantic area had prices at $2.987 a gallon and the Gulf Coast was at $2.869 Wednesday.
Slowing economic growth globally and a partial U.S. government shutdown heading into its sixth day whipsawed markets from Europe to Asia, The Associated Press reported.
Benchmark U.S. crude dropped 86 cents to $45.36 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract posted its biggest one-day gain in more than two years and settled at $46.22 a barrel in New York on Wednesday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, shed $1.11 to come in at $53.36 a barrel.
More wild market swings appeared imminent today, with U.S. stocks heading sharply lower after the Dow’s big gains on Wednesday.
For more details on diesel prices by region, click here.
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