Oil prices are plummeting again, but the benchmark used for most fuel surcharges has risen for a third consecutive week.
The Department of Energy/Energy Information Administration average weekly retail diesel price climbed 17.9 cents/gallon to $5.313/g, effective Monday but published Tuesday
It’s the third consecutive week of an increase, tacking on 73.5 cts/g during that time. But as a reflection of how volatile markets have been, the latest DOE/EIA price, even after such a steep slide, has risen to a level that is the highest since just June 8, when it was $5.21/g. It is just under where it was on April 27–$5.351/g–but since that day has experienced double digit increases or decreases eight out of the last 13 weeks.
Given the lag in retail changes, the price would not have been expected this week to reflect the sharp fall in futures prices that began when trading opened for the week Sunday evening U.S. time. That decline followed lower prices Friday that were seen not as a reversal of the market but more of a “breather” after several days of sharp increases. Possible peace?