The average cost for a gallon of diesel fuel increased to $6.20 in the US on Sunday- the third record set in three days.
For the first time in US history, the cost crossed the $6 threshold on Friday. It then shot up more than a dime on Saturday and by Sunday had ticked up to $6.20.
The fuel keeps the trucking industry moving, and higher diesel prices could begin to raise prices across a wide range of consumer goods.
From groceries to furniture and clothing to electronics, the trucking industry hauls billions of tons of consumer goods in the US each year.
The price of diesel is higher in Washington State, where the state gas tax and Climate Commitment Act combine to add about a dollar more. The average price for a gallon of diesel in Washington was $7.21 on Sunday. Washington had the second-highest average price in the nation for diesel, behind only California, where it cost $8.14 per gallon.
It’s a price Brady Ore is willing to pay because he has to. “Well, I don’t like it, but I’m an owner-operator, so that’s the only way I can keep moving,” the long-haul trucker said at a truck stop in Kent, Saturday.
Keeping his big rig – with its 53-foot trailer – moving isn’t cheap. “The last time I did fill it up it was probably about $900 dollars,” he said. “I haven’t filled it up lately, so – because of the prices– it’s probably a lot more than that.”
Every time the price goes up, he says he has to raise HIS prices. “You know I hate it that I have to charge more, but I’m forced to do that.”
And he says that cost will likely be passed on to you.
Economists tell CBS News businesses have largely held off passing along higher diesel prices, but as they use up inventory – and buy and transport new product - you could see steeper costs for everything from cars to furniture to groceries.
Analysts say the high price of diesel is mainly due to the US-Israel war on Iran and the Russia-Ukraine war, which are affecting production and supply at a time when reserves are already tight.
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