U.S. Diesel Fuel Cost Survey

WASHINGTON - Aug 31/06 - SNS -- The weekly diesel price provides a proxy for trends in U.S. truck rates, according to the USDA.

Diesel fuel is a significant expense for agriculture commodity movements by truck, accounting for 37% of the estimated variable cost.

       Retail On-Highway Diesel Prices to August 28
                      (US$/gallon)
                                     Change     Change
Region Location           Price     Week ago   Year ago
I      East Coast         2.953      -0.064      0.389
I      East Coast         2.955       0.002      0.391
       New England        3.035      -0.014      0.386
       Central Atlantic   3.074      -0.004      0.420
       Lower Atlantic     2.897       0.007      0.379
II     Midwest            3.026      -0.015      0.494
III    Gulf Coast         2.923       0.000      0.415
IV     Rocky Mountain     3.346      -0.003      0.620
V      West Coast         3.229      -0.008      0.309
       California         3.200      -0.021      0.155
Total  U.S.               3.027      -0.006      0.437