US Diesel Prices Decline, First Time in Six Weeks

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JOC Staff | Mar 05, 2013 11:07AM EST

In the week ending March 4, U.S. diesel prices dropped for the first time in six weeks, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The average price, $4.130 per gallon, is down 0.7 percent or 3 cents from the previous week. This is 0.9 percent higher than the price of $4.094 in the same week a year ago. The price of diesel remains above $4 per gallon in all regions of the country.

This is the first drop in prices after a five-week jump ended last week when the average rate remained flat. During the five-week surge, prices rose 6.75 percent or 26 cents per gallon. Despite this week’s price decline, the per-gallon average is still up 5.41 percent or 21 cents since the beginning of 2013.

Diesel prices in all regions dropped this week. The biggest decrease was in New England, which saw a 46 cent change from last week. Other regions experienced smaller declines.

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Trucking conditions decline in October: FTR

NASHVILLE, Ind. -- FTR's Trucking Conditions Index (TCI) declined to a reading of 3.4 in October. The environment for truckers as measured by the TCI softened primarily due to further delay in the issuance of revised Hours-of-Service regulations, according to FTR officials. "This is affecting the near-term outlook for capacity and therefore the current ability of carriers to gain rate increases," FTR said in a release.

FTR is projecting the TCI to increase as capacity conditions tighten, but the peak has been moved back from April to October of next year, reflecting the regulatory delay.  The Trucking Conditions Index is a compilation of factors affecting trucking companies and has remained in positive territory for the past eight months. Any reading above zero indicates an adequate trucking environment with readings above 10 a sign that volumes, prices and margin are in a good range for trucking companies.

"There was a considerable drop of six points in the TCI in October. Some of this drop was a result of changes in our methodology for calculating the TCI as we continue to refine this measurement," said Larry Gross, senior consultant for FTR.

"Although October's TCI reflected the rather subdued nature of the fall peak at that point in time, the recent strong start to the holiday shopping season combined with retailers' lean inventories cause us to believe that the TCI will soon resume climbing even in the absence of near-term changes in Federal regulations. The addition of any such changes, now expected to be announced by year-end, will exacerbate the trend."

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Jobless Claims Decline to Lowest Level Since April

Initial jobless claims decreased by 5,000 last week to 388,000, the lowest level in seven months, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Economists had forecast 395,000 new claims, Bloomberg reported.

The four-week moving average, a less volatile measure, declined to 396,750, from 400,750 the previous week.

Continuing jobless claims for the previous week ended Nov. 5 fell by 57,000 to 3.61 million, the lowest since September 2008.

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Jobless Claims Decline to Lowest Level in Seven Months

Initial jobless claims decreased by 10,000 last week to 390,000, the lowest level in seven months, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Economists had forecast 400,000 new claims, Bloomberg reported.

The four-week moving average, a less volatile measure, declined to 400,000, the lowest since April, from 405,250 the previous week.

Continuing jobless claims for the previous week ended Oct. 29 fell by 92,000 to 3.62 million.

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Jobless Claims Decline for Week

Initial jobless claims fell by 9,000 last week to 397,000, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Economists had forecast a decline to 400,000, Bloomberg reported.

The four-week moving average, a less volatile measure, declined to 404,500, from 406,500 the previous week.

Continuing jobless claims for the previous week ended Oct. 22 fell by 15,000 to 3.68 million.

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Existing Home Sales Decline in September

Existing home sales slipped 3% in September, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday.

The decrease to an annual rate of 4.91 million homes matched economists’ forecasts, Bloomberg reported.

The median price of existing homes fell 3.5% from a year ago, to $165,400.

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