Weekly market report · Week of Oct 5, 2026
U.S. Diesel Price Report
Retail diesel by region, New York Harbor ULSD, distillate stocks, and what it means for fleets, job sites and standby generators.
This week · Oct 5, 2026
Diesel falls for a second week, but stocks are still 11% below normal
U.S. retail diesel fell 18.3 cents to $6.199 a gallon for the week of Oct. 5, a second straight weekly drop from the Sept. 21 high of $6.529. It is still $2.49 above a year ago. Every region fell, led by the Lower Atlantic (−25.4¢) and the Midwest (−24.0¢); New England and the Central Atlantic slipped less than 5 cents. California averaged $8.082.
New York Harbor ULSD spot averaged $4.671 over the first two sessions of this week, 20.1 cents below last week’s average; Gulf Coast spot was down 19.4 cents at $4.537. Distillate stocks were flat at 105.1 million barrels in the week ending Oct. 2, about 11% below the five-year average. EIA’s October Short-Term Energy Outlook puts East Coast distillate inventories 32% below their five-year seasonal average in September.
Supply has been tight since the U.S. and Israel went to war with Iran on Feb. 28. On Oct. 9 President Trump said Russia would supply diesel to U.S. and global markets, with sanctions on Russian fuel temporarily lifted. Reuters reported (via the News Tribune) U.S. diesel futures fell almost 5% on the news; a Wood Mackenzie analyst called it “not a fix, but another stream” for a very tight market. An Oct. 5 executive order directs Treasury to defer federal excise tax on highway use of dyed diesel through Dec. 31. It’s a deferral, not a repeal. Ohio suspended its 47-cent diesel tax on Oct. 4 for 90 days, and Georgia has extended its fuel tax suspension, clear diesel included, through Nov. 5.
On the ground: one softer week doesn’t refill tanks, and stocks are thin going into heating season, thinnest on the East Coast. If you run standby generators, check tank levels and fuel condition now and top off before the first cold snap, not during it. Fleets and job sites: book bulk drops ahead of need so a tight terminal doesn’t become downtime. Thinking about dyed diesel in road trucks under the federal order? Hold off until Treasury publishes its guidance: the order covers federal excise tax only, and state taxes and penalties still apply.
Want a fuel price that holds? Ask about fixed-price diesel priced off NY Harbor ULSD futures.
Prices
Retail diesel vs. New York Harbor wholesale
U.S. retail on-highway diesel (weekly)NY Harbor ULSD spot (weekly average)
This week the U.S. retail average sits $1.53 a gallon above the New York Harbor wholesale price. That gap covers federal and state taxes, freight, and dealer and station margins. NY Harbor is the delivery point for the NYMEX ULSD futures contract, the benchmark FuelGo’s fixed-price diesel contracts are priced off.
| Region | $/gal | Week | Month | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. average | $6.199 | −0.183 | +0.232 | +2.488 |
| New England | $6.476 | −0.034 | +0.486 | +2.518 |
| Central Atlantic | $6.485 | −0.046 | +0.434 | +2.599 |
| Lower Atlantic | $5.699 | −0.254 | +0.094 | +2.043 |
| Midwest | $6.286 | −0.240 | +0.340 | +2.616 |
| Gulf Coast | $5.819 | −0.136 | +0.065 | +2.455 |
| Rocky Mountain | $6.267 | −0.140 | +0.462 | +2.596 |
| West Coast | $7.229 | −0.128 | +0.242 | +2.730 |
| California | $8.082 | −0.099 | +0.318 | +3.111 |
Retail on-highway diesel, all types, week of Oct 5, 2026. Includes taxes. Off-road dyed diesel skips most of them: see diesel taxes by state.
| Wholesale ULSD spot | Weekly avg | Week | Month | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Harbor ULSD | $4.671 | −0.201 | −0.257 | +2.362 |
| U.S. Gulf Coast ULSD | $4.537 | −0.194 | −0.344 | +2.339 |
Average of daily closing spot prices for the week starting Oct 5, 2026 (latest close Oct 6, 2026). Excludes taxes and delivery.
Supply
Distillate stocks vs. the five-year average
U.S. distillate fuel oil stocksFive-year average, same week
U.S. distillate stocks (diesel and heating oil) were 105.1 million barrels in the week ending Oct 2, 2026, down 42,000 barrels on the week, and 11% below the five-year average for this time of year. Low stocks going into winter usually mean a market that reacts harder to cold snaps and refinery outages.
Budget certainty
Lock in a fixed diesel price
FuelGo offers fixed-price diesel contracts priced off NYMEX New York Harbor ULSD futures. You agree a price per gallon for the months ahead, so your fuel budget holds whether the market rises or falls. Ask dispatch for a fixed-price quote for your volume and delivery location.
Reading the numbers
Retail, spot and futures: what each price means
Diesel has a price at every step between the refinery and your tank. This report tracks three of them. None of them is the price a commercial buyer pays for delivered fuel, but every delivered price is built on them.
EIA weekly retail price
Every Monday EIA records the self-serve cash price for on-highway diesel at about 590 stations, as of 8 a.m. local time. Taxes are included. The averages come out around 10 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday, or Wednesday after a Monday federal holiday. It’s what a truck pays at a station pump, not a bulk or delivered commercial price.
NY Harbor and Gulf Coast spot
A spot price is what wholesale buyers pay for ULSD delivered now at a trading hub, before taxes, freight and retail margins. The Gulf Coast has about 55% of U.S. refining capacity and supplies much of the East Coast by pipeline, tanker and barge. New York Harbor is the delivery point for the NYMEX ULSD futures contract, so its spot price is the one to set against the futures benchmark. EIA publishes both daily, from Refinitiv (LSEG) data.
NYMEX NY Harbor ULSD futures (HO)
The futures contract trades on NYMEX, part of CME Group, under the code HO. One contract is 42,000 gallons (1,000 barrels), quoted in dollars and cents per gallon and physically delivered in New York Harbor. Each month’s contract stops trading on the last business day of the month before delivery. Spot is fuel for now; futures price fuel for a coming month. When an issue includes it, FuelGo enters the front-month settlement by hand in the header above.
Your delivered price
Delivered fuel starts at the rack: the wholesale price at the terminal, which suppliers reset daily as spot and futures move. OPIS publishes rack prices for more than 360 U.S. terminals, without taxes or freight. Add freight to your site, the taxes that apply, and the delivery itself, whether that’s wet-hosing a fleet, a tank wagon drop or a full transport load. FuelGo quotes OPIS-based or indexed pricing: a published terminal price plus a margin agreed up front.
Why distillate stocks matter
Distillate stocks are the diesel and heating oil in U.S. storage, reported weekly by EIA. Refineries make both from the same part of the barrel, so heating demand in fall and winter competes with trucks, equipment and generators for the same supply. When stocks fall fast, wholesalers bid up what’s available, and a cold snap or refinery outage moves prices harder.
Why dyed off-road diesel costs less
Dyed diesel is the same fuel, dyed red for nontaxable uses such as off-road equipment, stationary generators and farming. It skips the federal excise tax and most state fuel taxes: on-road diesel carries $0.24–$0.94 a gallon more tax than dyed across the states we track (as of October 5, 2026). The weekly retail prices above are on-road prices. See diesel taxes by state.
How fixed pricing works
With a fixed-price contract you and FuelGo agree a price per gallon for a set period, priced off NYMEX NY Harbor ULSD futures. Floating pricing moves with the rack every day; a fixed price doesn’t move for the term.
- If prices rise, you keep paying the agreed price. That’s the point: a fuel line in the budget that holds for the term.
- If prices fall, you still pay the agreed price, so you can end up paying more than the floating price would have been. Fixed pricing buys certainty, not savings.
- Whether it fits depends on how much a price spike would hurt your bids, contracts or operating budget, not on a guess about where the market goes next.
This report is market information, not investment advice or a recommendation to buy at any particular time. A fixed-price quote depends on volume, term and delivery location.
FAQ
Diesel price questions, answered
Why is diesel so expensive right now?
This week the U.S. retail average is $6.199 a gallon, $2.488 above a year ago, and U.S. distillate stocks are 11% below the five-year average for this time of year. Crude oil is usually the biggest piece of the price: EIA puts it at about 51% of the retail diesel price on average from 2004 through 2025. The rest is refining, distribution and retail costs and margins, plus taxes. Refining costs climb when distillate stocks are tight and buyers bid for prompt supply, and heating-oil demand adds pressure every fall and winter. For what moved prices this week and why, read this week’s commentary at the top of this page.
What is the NY Harbor ULSD price?
It is the spot price for ultra-low sulfur diesel (15 ppm sulfur or less) bought for prompt delivery in New York Harbor, before taxes, freight and retail margins. New York Harbor is the delivery point for the NYMEX NY Harbor ULSD futures contract, which makes it a widely used benchmark for U.S. diesel and heating oil. EIA publishes it daily from Refinitiv (LSEG) data. It averaged $4.671 a gallon in the latest week shown above.
What’s the difference between spot and futures prices?
A spot price is for fuel delivered now at a trading hub such as New York Harbor or the Gulf Coast. A futures price is for a standard contract to deliver in a set future month: one NYMEX NY Harbor ULSD contract is 42,000 gallons, priced in dollars per gallon and physically delivered in New York Harbor. The two usually move together, and the gap between them shows how tight supply is today compared with the months ahead. Neither includes taxes, freight or delivery.
Why is diesel more expensive in California?
California averaged $8.082 a gallon this week, $1.883 above the U.S. average. EIA puts West Coast premiums down to taxes and supply: the region is relatively isolated and mostly supplied by its own refineries, so replacing lost output from outside is slow and costly. California also requires its own diesel formulation (CARB diesel, which has capped aromatic content since 1993), and its Low Carbon Fuel Standard covers diesel. Federal and state per-gallon taxes on road diesel come to $0.73 there, the 8th highest of the 50 states we rank (as of October 5, 2026). See diesel taxes by state.
How does fixed-price diesel work?
You agree a price per gallon with FuelGo for a set period, priced off NYMEX NY Harbor ULSD futures. If the market rises, your price holds. If the market falls, it also holds, so you can end up paying more than the floating price would have been. What you buy is budget certainty, not guaranteed savings. Ask dispatch for a fixed-price quote for your volume and delivery locations.
When does EIA update diesel prices?
EIA surveys retail stations every Monday, recording the self-serve cash price for on-highway diesel as of 8 a.m. local time, and publishes the averages around 10 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday. When Monday is a federal holiday the release moves to Wednesday but still reflects Monday’s prices. Spot prices are published daily, and distillate stocks weekly in EIA’s Weekly Petroleum Status Report.
Why is off-road diesel cheaper?
Off-road diesel is the same fuel, dyed red for nontaxable uses such as off-road equipment, stationary generators and farming. It skips the federal excise tax and most state fuel taxes. Across the states we track, on-road diesel carries $0.24–$0.94 a gallon more tax than dyed (as of October 5, 2026). Putting dyed diesel in a highway vehicle can bring an IRS penalty of the greater of $1,000 or $10 a gallon. An executive order signed October 5, 2026 directs Treasury to defer the federal excise tax, without penalties, on highway use of dyed diesel through December 31, 2026. It is a deferral, not a repeal, and state rules still apply. See diesel taxes by state.
How is a delivered commercial diesel price set?
It starts with the rack price, the wholesale price at the fuel terminal, which suppliers reset daily as spot and futures prices move. OPIS publishes rack prices for more than 360 U.S. terminals, without taxes or freight. A delivered price adds freight to your site, the taxes that apply to your fuel, and the delivery itself, whether that is wet-hosing a fleet, a tank wagon drop or a full transport load. FuelGo quotes OPIS-based or indexed pricing: a published terminal price plus a margin agreed up front, so you can check our number against the index.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, weekly retail diesel prices, daily spot prices (Refinitiv, an LSEG business, via EIA) and weekly distillate stocks; data retrieved Oct 11, 2026. NYMEX futures settlements are entered by FuelGo from CME Group data. This report is market information, not a price quote or investment advice. EIA Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update