US diesel prices fall below $6 per gallon for first time in two months
National average retail diesel prices dropped to $5.998 per gallon on Saturday as crude prices and seasonal demand weakened.
The national average retail price for diesel in the US fell to $5.998 per gallon on Saturday, according to fuel tracker GasBuddy, as reported by the Times of India and Business Standard. This marks the first time in two months that prices have dropped below the $6 threshold.
The decline follows a period of high costs, including a record high of $6.519 on September 22. In California, diesel prices briefly went over $10 per gallon. Previous price surges were linked to supply disruptions from the US-Israeli war against Iran and Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries.
High fuel costs contributed to inflation and impacted businesses, farmers, and consumers. The price levels were also a factor in Democrats winning both houses of Congress during this month's midterm elections, defeating President Donald Trump's Republicans.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said that demand for diesel usually softens in autumn as travel decreases and the threat of hurricane-related refinery disruptions in the Gulf Coast reduces. He also noted that refinery output is recovering as scheduled maintenance is mostly finished by November.
Other factors include a drop in Brent crude futures, which fell 18.5 per cent over the last two weeks. Additionally, average gasoline prices fell below $4 per gallon this month for the first time since August 10.
