Diesel Prices Not Falling As Fast As Unleaded
146 views · Published 2 February 2015 · 2:21 · Indexed 28 September 2026
Channel: WLOS News 13 · 2015 · News & Politics
BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N.C. -- Numbers out Monday show gas prices continue to fall -- website GasBuddy.com reports one in six stations now offer gas for less than $2 a gallon across the country.
These lower gas prices have some wondering why the savings at the pump aren't trickling down to the other things on sale.
Those prices are controlled by the price of diesel, which is not falling as fast.
At the Travel Center off I-40 in Buncombe County, the price of diesel is $3.25 -- almost $1 more than the price of unleaded. Truck drivers from around the nation have taken notice of the price difference.
"Even back in the year 2000, gasoline and diesel were within 20 cents of each other," truck driver Peter Noel says. "Why does it have to be a dollar difference now?"
Chief Economist with Parsec Financial, Dr. James Smith, says it's because the refining process for diesel oil and fuel oil, used for heating homes, is very similar. He says the law of supply and demand comes into play as the demand for that fuel oil in the winter is higher.
"They're paying a dollar more for diesel because they're competing with people in New England who don't want to freeze in the winter," Dr. Smith says.
So just how long will these prices stick around? Smith says probably until warmer temperatures arrive in the spring.
"Diesel prices will come down a lot more over the next six months while gasoline prices probably won't come down very much more," Dr. Smith says.
Monday is the 93-rd day in a row of declining gasoline prices, which sets a record.
For the cheapest gas prices in your area, check out our Pump Patrol on our website.
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