U.S. Diesel Fuel Cost Survey

WASHINGTON - Mar 6/08 - 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 March 3
                      (US$/gallon)
                                   Change    Change
Region Location           Price   Week ago  Year ago
I      East Coast         3.700     0.092     1.096
       New England        3.813     0.103     1.120
       Central Atlantic   3.825     0.132     1.157
       Lower Atlantic     3.636     0.074     1.068
II     Midwest            3.639     0.114     1.033
III    Gulf Coast         3.609     0.099     1.022
IV     Rocky Mountain     3.573     0.100     0.915
V      West Coast         3.736     0.127     0.941
       California         3.803     0.131     0.906
Total  U.S.               3.658     0.106     1.032