The national average price for on highway diesel fell to $4.57 a gallon in the week reported July 6 by the Energy Information Administration, a decline of about nine cents from the prior week. The drop reached every region the agency tracks.
Regional declines ranged from roughly 5.8 cents in the Gulf Coast to more than 12 cents in the Midwest, the widest single week spread among the five reporting regions. Gulf Coast prices continue to run below the national figure because refining capacity is concentrated there, while West Coast and New England prices remain the highest.
The weekly decline sits against a much higher year over year baseline. The July average ran about 84 cents above the same week in 2025 and roughly 71 cents above the same week in 2024. For a fleet running 120,000 miles a year at 6.5 miles per gallon, an 84 cent difference translates to roughly $15,500 in additional annual fuel cost per truck before fuel surcharge recovery.
Fuel surcharge programs typically reset weekly against the EIA national or regional benchmark, so a nine cent move flows through to shipper invoices within one or two billing cycles. Carriers running dedicated contracts with monthly surcharge resets absorb the swing longer.
Diesel pricing has been volatile through the second quarter, driven by refinery run rates, export volumes, and crude market movement rather than by any change in domestic freight demand.
Source: Work Truck Online - https://www.worktruckonline.com/news/july-diesel-trends-update-v2