Diesel Fuel Finally Comes Down

While the price of "regular" gasoline has come down over the past few months (and sharply just this past month, December 2022) diesel fuel, which is used by commercial trucking fleets, remained stuck at high levels. It's rare you see this kind of historical divergence in price:

While Diesel is usually the more costly, the price really took off, and went vertical in a two week period, going up by over a dollar a gallon between February 28 and March 14th.

It continued to tack higher to a peak of $5.81 on June 22nd, and stayed in a narrow range until recently dipping below $5.00. Futures prices would seem to indicate further declines ahead.

So, why is it different now? Mostly because of refining capacity, which remains stretched in this country. We also export a good deal of our production, which is becoming a contentious issue as it raises prices domestically while our trading partners rely on our supplies in a market choked by war and the machinations of the Gulf States.

This sort of thing doesn't make the headlines, or is usually buried in the financial press, but it's a critical issue given the political implications, inside and out of the United States.

12/12/2022