U.S. Diesel Fuel Cost Survey

WASHINGTON - Aug 7/14 - 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 4
                        (US$/gallon)
                                   Change    Change
Region Location           Price   Week ago  Year ago
I      East Coast         3.906    -0.004    -0.013
       New England        4.019    -0.025    -0.037
       Central Atlantic   3.989    -0.004     0.006
       Lower Atlantic     3.817     0.000    -0.028
II     Midwest            3.798    -0.003    -0.080
III    Gulf Coast         3.754    -0.013    -0.087
IV     Rocky Mountain     3.877    -0.011    -0.054
V      West Coast         4.016    -0.001    -0.038
        less California   3.930     0.002    -0.031
       California         4.087    -0.003    -0.046
Total  U.S.               3.853    -0.005    -0.056