Diesel price continues slide as global oil plunges

A slipping stock market and sliding global oil prices have contributed to a drop in diesel prices for the 13th week in a row.

The average U.S. retail pump price for diesel was down 5.4 cents in the Aug. 24 report by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), to $2.561 per gallon, which is running at levels last seen six years ago.

That’s $1.26 per gallon cheaper than this time last year.

Diesel prices were down in all regions, paced by the West Coast, not including California, where it fell a whopping 8 cents to $2.61. Even in California, which has the highest price in the contiguous 48 states at $2.894 per gallon, the price dropped 5.1 cents.

In New England the price fell 6.4 cents to $2.739, still higher than the overall East Coast average at $2.647 (down 4.9 cents).

Diesel also dipped 6.4 cents on Gulf Coast in to $2.414, the lowest in the country, while the price was down 5.2 cents in the Midwest, coming in at $2.487. The Rocky Mountain region posted a 3.5 cent drop, to $2.592.

Oil has recently dipped below $40 per barrel, and the last time the price was that low (February 2009), diesel soon fell to near $2 per gallon, according to EIA data.