U.S. Diesel Fuel Cost Survey

WASHINGTON - Oct 2/08 - 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 September 29
                      (US$/gallon)
                                   Change    Change
Region Location           Price   Week ago  Year ago
I      East Coast         4.020    -0.001     0.968
       New England        4.077    -0.033     0.960
       Central Atlantic   4.073    -0.008     0.932
       Lower Atlantic     3.992     0.005     0.984
II     Midwest            3.936     0.005     0.875
III    Gulf Coast         3.929     0.005     0.954
IV     Rocky Mountain     3.944    -0.020     0.844
V      West Coast         3.941    -0.002     0.851
       California         3.963     0.012     0.820
Total  U.S.               3.959     0.001     0.911