U.S. Diesel Fuel Cost Survey

WASHINGTON - Oct 4/07 - 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 October 1
                      (US$/gallon)
                                   Change    Change
Region Location           Price   Week ago  Year ago
I      East Coast         3.052    0.015    0.485
       New England        3.117    0.017    0.439
       Central Atlantic   3.141    0.017    0.447
       Lower Atlantic     3.008    0.015    0.505
II     Midwest            3.061    0.007    0.594
III    Gulf Coast         2.975    0.004    0.485
IV     Rocky Mountain     3.100    0.072    0.421
V      West Coast         3.090    0.036    0.301
       California         3.143    0.050    0.308
Total  U.S.               3.048    0.016    0.502