Diesel prices have risen for the third consecutive week, pushing the national average back above $2.That average U.S. retail pump price for diesel was up 3.2 cents in the March 7 report by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), to $2.021 per gallon. That’s the largest increase since the price rose 6.4 cents in October, driven higher by refinery issues in the Midwest. The price is still about $0.92 per gallon cheaper than this time last year and continues to hover at a level last seen seven years ago.Prices were up in every region of the country except New England, where diesel was down 0.07 cents to $2.147.Otherwise on the East Coast, the Central Atlantic region posted a 1.7 cent increase to $2.188, and the Lower Atlantic was up 3.4 cents to $1.979.The largest increases came in the Rocky Mountain region where a gallon of diesel was up 4.6 cents ($1.927) and in the Midwest, also up 4.6 cents ($1.983).The West Coast less California saw a 4.3 cent increase to $2.097. California registered a 1.4 cent bump to $2.316, still the highest price in the contiguous 48 states.The Gulf Coast reported diesel prices were up 3.3 cents to $1.907, holding on to the lowest prices in the nation. The national average price for gasoline was up 5.8 cents to $1.841.
