Fuel prices

[John K Jordan]

Gas prices continue to go down here. Some stations have regular for $1.89 a gallon. I saw others at $1.93, $2.03. Is it the same where you live?

Hey, can someone tell me why diesel is so much higher than gasoline? Diesel is about $1 higher per gallon here.
In Italy, the diesel is cheaper than the gasoline. (Of course the gasoline is about $6 a gallon, or at least it was when I was there recently.)

JKJ

[julian abram]

Yep, paid $1.88 today here. Funny how a few years ago some oil economist experts were preaching peak oil theory, world supply would soon be depleted. Now we are drowning in a world supply. US became a net oil exporter this last week according to an article published earlier this week.

[Aaron Rosenthal]

Your cheap prices won't last long.
Opec is cutting production; the US's largest supplier (Canada) is cutting production to get within smelling distance of West Texas cride's per barrel price;
The producers in the Permian basin cannot make money at these prices, so they will call a halt for a while.
Dont ever compare anything to Italy, except maybe parmisan cheese and the Mafia; that place is going out of business

[Bill Dufour]

Paid just over $3.00 per gallon today. I think California still has its own blend so outside gas can not be shipped in unless it is custom refined for the California market.
Bill D.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Gas prices continue to go down here. Some stations have regular for $1.89 a gallon. I saw others at $1.93, $2.03. Is it the same where you live?

Hey, can someone tell me why diesel is so much higher than gasoline? Diesel is about $1 higher per gallon here.
In Italy, the diesel is cheaper than the gasoline. (Of course the gasoline is about $6 a gallon, or at least it was when I was there recently.)

JKJ

Your regular price is $1.00 per gallon cheaper than ours.

[Brian Henderson]

Paid just over $3.00 per gallon today. I think California still has its own blend so outside gas can not be shipped in unless it is custom refined for the California market.
Bill D.

And they just jacked our taxes so they can squander the money. Cost $3.49 a gallon when I filled up today.

[Brian Deakin]

The term gallon has a number of definitions

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallon

The US gallon is legally defined as 231 cubic inches (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cubic_inch), which is exactly 3.785411784 litres

The current cost of a gallon in the UK using the USA definition

Petrol $6.35
Diesel $6.16

per USA gallon

[Mike Cutler]

Nope, not even close to that.We're probably running about $1.00 more per gallon. We have some really high taxes on gas though, I think the 2nd highest in the country.
I think only California and Hawaii have higher gas prices.

[Malcolm McLeod]

Your cheap prices won't last long.
Opec is cutting production; the US's largest supplier (Canada) is cutting production to get within smelling distance of West Texas cride's per barrel price;
The producers in the Permian basin cannot make money at these prices, so they will call a halt for a while.
Dont ever compare anything to Italy, except maybe parmisan cheese and the Mafia; that place is going out of business

Don't bet on this in the Permian/Delaware Basins. Oil production is a complicated dance that includes price and cost, but also lease requirements (produce it, or loose it). And some wells have been producing for years, with (old) lower completion cost and already recovered capital, so they can be produced profitably at relatively lower retail prices.

As Julian pointed out, USA is net exporter now*. OPEC can certainly influence prices, but they can no longer dictate them.

IMHO, if you've always wanted that classic '70s muscle car with a 429 Cobra Jet, getting 6mpg:eek:, now is probably a good time.

* - (Media largely ignored this; they were too busy that week crucifying Kanye West:D.)

[Curt Harms]

Nope, not even close to that.We're probably running about $1.00 more per gallon. We have some really high taxes on gas though, I think the 2nd highest in the country.
I think only California and Hawaii have higher gas prices.

Pennsylvania is right up there too. New Jersey recently enacted a $.25/gal. tax increase and they're still 25 to 30 cents a gallon cheaper than PA.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Black is the new gold.

Gas prices have gone down here as well, but not by a whole lot. Here is an interesting fact: The GDP growth/decline of Trinidad, if graphed next to the price of fuel per barrel, follows the EXACT same trend. Also Venezuela's suffering is in part due to gambling everything on oil prices. (Keeping in mind the forum's rule on politics- leaving out the political reasons.) It's a worldwide catch 22- Prices go down: Good for consumer, bad for suppliers. Prices go up: bad for consumer, good for suppliers. By the way, Exon in Guyana just found a massive supply of oil that they believe is one of the largest in the world. Guyana's GDP went up something like 5%, but they are saying that it's actually not going to do them a whole lot of good because most of the drilling is offshore and will not create a whole lot of jobs.

As for diesel in the US, it's because of heavy taxes levied on diesel to (a) pay for roads that transport trucks play a large role in the wear and tear on, and (b) environmental reasons. This happened in the late 80's or early 90's, and before that diesel was cheaper in the US to regular petrol.

[Jerome Stanek]

here we are right around $2.00

[Chris Damm]

$1.83 is the cheapest here. It's dropping every day.

[Al Launier]

NH yesterday was $2.45 for regular (87 octane).

[Jim Becker]

Locally, it's at about $2.40, but that's down considerably from where it was not so long ago.

[John K Jordan]

As for diesel in the US, it's because of heavy taxes levied on diesel to (a) pay for roads that transport trucks play a large role in the wear and tear on, and (b) environmental reasons. This happened in the late 80's or early 90's, and before that diesel was cheaper in the US to regular petrol.

Now that makes sense! Thanks!

When working at the national lab we learned about all about rigs and Equivalent Single Axle Loads when my group developed a fiber-optic weigh-in-motion sensor. Different highways are designed to withstand the passage of different numbers of ESALs before degrading. There is a whole lot more to road construction than I imagined.
https://www.pavementinteractive.org/reference-desk/design/design-parameters/equivalent-single-axle-load/
We were told overweight trucks operated to bypass the weigh stations were a huge problem in some areas.

I spent a lot of time along the side of interstates with trucks whizzing by. Some drivers tried to bounce their rigs to catch and tear up our test scales (some apparently HATED the idea of any kind of weight enforcement), and traveling all over taking data and video, visiting weigh stations, and collaborating with partners. Good clean fun!

Maybe some day they will tax the big rigs more appropriately and leave us with little diesel farm trucks and cars alone. I buy ag diesel without out tax for the tractor and such but apparently it's expensive to get caught with it in a road vehicle! (It has dye I'm told detectable even in trace amounts.)

JKJ

[Tom M King]

Here, it seems like diesel always goes up in Winter. Someone told me once that it was because it's heating oil season, but I don't know of anyone that burns heating oil any more.

I put a 56 gallon aftermarket tank in my dually. Back when diesel fuel went up to 4 dollars, it cost me $200 to fill up a pickup.

[John K Jordan]

Here, it seems like diesel always goes up in Winter. Someone told me once that it was because it's heating oil season, but I don't know of anyone that burns heating oil any more....

I wondered if some of the increase was because of the cold weather anti-gel additives. The fuel depot guy here said they only add these as winter approaches.

I haul the no-road-tax ag diesel in a 55-gal drum. A friend gave me a 100 gal tank with an electric pump - that's nice since I have four off-road things here that use diesel.

JKJ

[Bill Dufour]

Realistically fuel taxes should pay for the entire road system, the entire highway patrol, about half/ of all city police and fire departments. And a similar portion of ambulance and emergency room staffing. How should electric vehicles pay for their share?

[Bryan Lisowski]

Pennsylvania is right up there too. New Jersey recently enacted a $.25/gal. tax increase and they're still 25 to 30 cents a gallon cheaper than PA.

Land we still don't have to pump it either. Yesterday I paid $2.31.

[Peter Christensen]

Gas is around $1.04Can / litre or $2.92US / US gal. here and we are among the cheaper places in the country.

[Tanner Hawey]

Gas is around $1.04Can / litre or $2.92US / US gal. here and we are among the cheaper places in the country.

2 hours south it's $0.929/litre

[Yathin Krishnappa]

Realistically fuel taxes should pay for the entire road system, the entire highway patrol, about half/ of all city police and fire departments. And a similar portion of ambulance and emergency room staffing. How should electric vehicles pay for their share?

Like I've said before on another thread, electric car drivers I know (me included) are more than willing to pay their share and will do so when there's a formal law around it. Also, how many electric cars are there on the road today and how much more would it rake in taxes if they paid "their share"? This is still an experimental phase and we (electric car drivers) are paying LOT of money for the car we are getting. It does NOT make economic sense to drive an electric today, so please cut us some slack? In the end, this may or may not work, but we need to try various solutions (like Hydrogen that Keith brought up in the topic on electric cars) to the obvious problem because it is unlikely we can just replenish Earth from a galactic filling station.

[Mike Kreinhop]

With today's currency exchange rate, a gallon of 98 Octane is about $6.25 and a gallon of diesel is about $5.75 at the local gas station. The AAFES price this week for a gallon of diesel is $3.56 ($0.937 per liter).

[Scott Donley]

3.49 a gal here last week, we also have a lot of taxes added on in that.

[Peter Christensen]

2 hours south it's $0.929/litre

Hi neighbour. I'll go to Costco in an hour and get it for about $0.95 or so. The $1.04 is the average price but seems to be dropping every couple three days or so. We'll get used to low prices again and they will kick them back up higher than before.

[John K Jordan]

... and they will kick them back up higher than before.

For some odd reason gas prices here seem to go up during holiday travel. Maybe it costs more to make it then since the refinery workers are traveling too. Ha.

JKJ

[Bryan Lisowski]

For some odd reason gas prices here seem to go up during holiday travel. Maybe it costs more to make it then since the refinery workers are traveling too. Ha.

JKJ

Gas always goes up over the holidays, long weekends and summer here. Reason is simple, more people on the road = more money.

[Ronald Blue]

Taxes are only a minor part of why diesel is so much higher than gasoline. The federal tax is only 6 cents per gallon higher. State taxes are all over the place but some are even lower than the taxes on gas. Check out the lick to US motor fuel taxes.

taxadmin.org/assets/docs/Research/Rates/mf.pdf

[Dave Lehnert]

Cincinnati Ohio

Last week we were around $2.04 gal. It has jumped back up to around $2.35 gal over the weekend.

[John Ziebron]

Here in SE Michigan gas has been in the low $2 range for a few weeks. We have "winter blend" and "summer blend" here and that was always used as a reason (or excuse) to raise prices. Has anyone else noticed that they don't give any kind of reason any more when gas prices go up. I think they figure people are just acclimated to that now.

Diesel always used to be cheaper than gas. Then in late 1993 when they passed a law about diesel emissions the refiners had to supply only low sulfur content fuel. That was the major cause of the increase of diesel fuel.

[Walter Plummer]

$1.99 gal. at Sam's club here.

[John Goodin]

The thing with gas tax paying for roads is that the federal gas tax was last raised in 1993. Road construction and maintenance cost have skyrocketed while more fuel efficient vechiles are on the road. In Texas the state gas tax was last raised in 1991 and 25 percent gets siphoned off for education. The state also has prohibited local entities for leaving a optional gas tax. Indexing the gas tax would be the least painful for politicians but there is not the will to do anything.

[Matt Mattingley]

I’m paying $3.16 a gallon for good old regular. With all things equal.

[Jason Roehl]

I paid $2.019/gallon last week, but then we shot back up a bit, so now the same station is at $2.099.

I heard an interview with a former oil industry executive a few years ago who said that the reason diesel was more expensive than gas was because most of us don't get as upset (and change our behavior) when the cost of our goods goes up a bit due to the higher diesel prices involved in shipping those goods, but we do start changing our vehicular purchases and such when the cost of gas goes up. So the oil companies use the price of diesel to somewhat subsidize the price of gasoline.

[Curt Harms]

For some odd reason gas prices here seem to go up during holiday travel. Maybe it costs more to make it then since the refinery workers are traveling too. Ha.

JKJ

Around here gas prices seem to drop after Labor Day and start to rise again in the spring, peaking around Memorial Day. I haven't really noticed a holiday spike but maybe there is one. I've wondered about the need for a winter/summer blends since the addition of ethanol. Is it needed or is it one of those "We've done it that way for years" things. The switch over is one of those things that the industry blames for seasonal price differences.

[Van Huskey]

$1.939 this morning.

[Mike Henderson]

I haul the no-road-tax ag diesel in a 55-gal drum. A friend gave me a 100 gal tank with an electric pump - that's nice since I have four off-road things here that use diesel.

JKJ

In an ag area that I was familiar with, they dyed the ag diesel a different color. If the cops stopped you they would take a sample of your diesel and it if was the wrong color, you were in trouble.

That color could last through several fill ups of street legal diesel, depending on how empty your tank was when you filled up.

Mike

[Derek Meyer]

I'm in the wrong area of the country for cheap gas. Today it is $3.05/gallon.

Across the Washington border, 8 miles away in Pullman, it is $3.31. Washington has higher gas taxes than Idaho does.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Here price range from $1.83 to $2.49, depending upon which side of town you are on. Same brands. When we go to Savanah for ST Patrick's day, cheapest gas is always in Florence SC. Amazing thing is they truck from Selma NC to Florence (150 miles,) and still sell it a lot cheaper than here in NC. We have a dime more road tax, but difference is a lot more than a dime. Cars get a lot better mileage than they used to. Some where I read that gas consumption in the US peaked in 2007 due to better mileage. More cars being driven more miles, and less gas being used. Ethanol wasn't favor to older cars, with most suffering a 25% loss in mileage. In my 1990 Honda Civic, I was getting 40 mpg, but with ethanol mileage dropped to 32 mpg. So I was burning more gas to make supplies go further. Yeah, right!

[Osvaldo Cristo]

Pricing for fuel are free, but at average, today in Brazil, Sao Paulo metro area:

Gasoline: USD 4.00 per gallon (standard gasoline, unleaded of course)
Ethanol: USD 3.21 per gallon
Diesel: USD 3.60 per gallon

Virtually all private car here is flexible, accepting both ethanol and gasoline, as well any mix of them - but most people run their car on ethanol.

[Darcy Warner]

Fuel oil and diesel, same thing different color. Always drives diesel up at the beginning of winter. I don't really care about the price, I need it, I put it in the truck.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Regular unleaded -
Monday - $1.88 a gallon.
Tuesday - $2.19 a gallon.

Oil company says (dripping with sarcasm) "we only make a few pennies a gallon"....yeah - right - but they can instantly raise the price $.31 a gallon...
Lying sacks of manure...

[Jim Becker]

Rich, it's the stations along the road that only make pennies on the gallon which is why they all now have convenience stores with high-margin impulse items for sale. The oil companies, do indeed, rake it in..

[Malcolm McLeod]

The 'major' oil companies, generally speaking, do not own any retail outlets anymore - even if it has their name on it. ...And don't forget $4/gal gas was just a little while ago.


Regular unleaded -
Monday - $1.88 a gallon.
Tuesday - $2.19 a gallon.

Oil company says (dripping with sarcasm) "we only make a few pennies a gallon"....yeah - right - but they can instantly raise the price $.31 a gallon...
Lying sacks of manure...

Since oil prices are dropping, this sounds very much like a factor other than 'big oil' greed... Maybe the $1.88 was a promo? Maybe a gas war to capture margin? Maybe a new tax kicked in? Maybe lying (by who?, ...he asked curiously)? Sounds like you've already found a narrative that works for you...;)


Rich, it's the stations along the road that only make pennies on the gallon which is why they all now have convenience stores with high-margin impulse items for sale. The oil companies, do indeed, rake it in..

Rake it in? Check their margins (it's in their published stock reports). What margins do you expect on your sales revenue..??

Odd too, that no one is castigated for charging $1.50 for a soda at these stores?? Last I heard, typical in-store cost was around $0.06-0.08 for a large drink, so figure $1.50 retail equates to ~20X margins.

Grab a bottle of water while you're there, then calculate the price/gallon. ....Oh, and what kind of mileage does your car get on that?:cool:

Reminds me of the SawStop threads ... don't like it, don't buy it.:eek:

[Jim Becker]

Malcolm, I guess it's a matter of scale. Even if the oil companies (producers) have modest net margins, the shear volume of business they do results in healthy profits to them and their shareholders. The little guys who run/own the stations these days that sell to consumers have no choice but to sell inflated soda and putrid hot dogs just to keep things going...fuel alone doesn't cut it. Many of them do huge business in tobacco products still, too. (sadly...)

[Bill Orbine]

Malcolm, I guess it's a matter of scale. Even if the oil companies (producers) have modest net margins, the shear volume of business they do results in healthy profits to them and their shareholders. The little guys who run/own the stations these days that sell to consumers have no choice but to sell inflated soda and putrid hot dogs just to keep things going...fuel alone doesn't cut it. Many of them do huge business in tobacco products still, too. (sadly...)

Or fix cars! A lot of the gas stations can't operate a convenience stores.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Malcolm, I guess it's a matter of scale. Even if the oil companies (producers) have modest net margins, the shear volume of business they do results in healthy profits to them and their shareholders. The little guys who run/own the stations these days that sell to consumers have no choice but to sell inflated soda and putrid hot dogs just to keep things going...fuel alone doesn't cut it. Many of them do huge business in tobacco products still, too. (sadly...)Most customers also use credit cards, which bite into store profits. At Shell stations, I get a nickle (twice) for using Shell CC and Shell rewards card. How many CC offer up to 5% back on gas purchases? The Cash customer has to pay for this for CC customers. Several states allow higher prices for CC purchases to off set this cost.

[John K Jordan]

Even if the oil companies (producers) have modest net margins, the shear volume of business they do results in healthy profits to them and their shareholders.

Did the big Pilot scandal hit the national news? I don't know if they are in the rest of the country but Pilot is huge here. The company brass and sales conspired to offer volume rebates to major companies then proceeded to cheat them with tricky booking. Audio recordings and emails sent the big boys to jail. Their profits were even higher for a while!

But even with straight sales I notice the Pilot prices are generally higher than most of the other stations.

Prices here the last few days at the independents dropped more to the $180s for regular and even diesel was still going down today. That, of course, is if you don't by from the interstate exit villages. Captive interstate travelers always pay more.

A number of stations here offer a discount for cash - is that everywhere?

JKJ

[Van Huskey]

Oil companies don't make a lot per gallon, less than 8 cents per is the usually reported number, similar to what the final seller makes. Obviously, the huge profits are due to volume. There are plenty of other products that have much higher margins and much more expensive by volume, even simple daily use things like soft drinks and even some "brand name" bottled water. That said people are far more aware of fuel prices for two reasons, it is an economically necessary purchase for most people in the US and it has a knock on effect of prices of almost everything we consume.

We have homes in two states and in one most people hate when gas prices move up even a little, in the other a huge portion of the state loves it. In LA the O&G "plant baws" dream about $120 a barrel crude so they can get that new F350 Platinum with a brand new set of truck nutz to hang off the back. < possibly a very narrow stereotype that one is likely not to recognize unless they have interactions with "plant baws" or happen to watch "Refined" on youtube. BTW Refined is NSFW, well unless your work is sitting in a plant control room cooking gumbo and watching youtube instead of filling out work orders.

[Jim Becker]

JKJ, I didn't hear about the Pilot thing you mention. I don't really see them unless I'm traveling back and forth to Florida, etc. I do sometimes buy from them or one of their truck-stop peers while on the highway, but it's always predicated on who has the best (CC) price at that particular moment in time. GasBuddy app helps with that, too.

Here at home, all our gas gets purchased at Costco. I used to buy in NJ because it was often 30 cents a gallon less expensive than here in PA, but after they raised the fuel taxes about a year or so ago, there was no incentive for me to cross the river anymore. Costco price is about the same and closer. Of course, that also means I'm not spending other money over there, either as a result...

BTW, what's "cash"??? LOL :D

[Pat Barry]

Will gas prices continue downward alongside the stock market?

[Malcolm McLeod]

Will gas prices continue downward alongside the stock market?

My stock market crystal ball is in for repairs, but I talk to folks that are neck deep in the oil & gas boom, currently going strong in the Delaware Basin. While the media was busy crucifying Kanye West, the USA quietly became a net exporter of oil & gas. I think this bodes well for stable prices (barring government intervention).

...Might be as good a time as any for a Class-A RV, or that classic Shelby GT500 KR (IIRC a 429 Cobra Jet, schlepping along at 6mpg)?? You know you want one!:D

[Van Huskey]

Will gas prices continue downward alongside the stock market?

I am happy about the first one (1.769 this morning) but I was looking at my YTD portfolio numbers and because I am heavy on index funds this is my worst year since 2008. 2013 and 2017 made me ecstatic but the last 3 months have been painful. Paper loses I know but still.

[John K Jordan]

I am happy about the first one (1.769 this morning) but I was looking at my YTD portfolio numbers and because I am heavy on index funds this is my worst year since 2008. 2013 and 2017 made me ecstatic but the last 3 months have been painful. Paper loses I know but still.

It's less stressful to quit looking at those numbers! Maybe diversify and don't even check but every five years (depending on how old you are!)

JKJ

[Van Huskey]

It's less stressful to quit looking at those numbers! Maybe diversify and don't even check but every five years (depending on how old you are!)

JKJ

I'm 51 but have been ~80% retired for about 4 years now. The problem I have is I can't really get away from the numbers since I do my own taxes and since I still have a lot in equities and those are almost all index funds now so it is hard to miss the major market tickers when I watch any news.

[Jim Becker]

I'm with you Van...things as of late have been pretty depressing, even with the more conservative mix I have at present for most of my retirement money. (that I actually live off of now) Frustrating for sure and like you, I can't just ignore it.

[Jim Falsetti]

John, it's been a while since I have looked at gasoline and diesel prices, but you can get tons of data on pricing and supply from the EIA - for example, diesel and gasoline prices by region are available here - https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_gnd_a_EPD2DXL0_pte_dpgal_w.htm.

From the manufacturing side, gasoline is generally cheaper to make, and there is generally more gasoline than diesel in any given crude oil. So diesel should be more expensive than gasoline to start with.

Just eyeballing trading location prices, it looks like wholesale diesel is ~35cts/gallon more than gasoline. Don't know if that includes an additive package, but would guess it does not.

Then there are distribution costs - perhaps these are higher than gasoline - and lastly taxes, which can vary widely.

I think this explains at least part of your question.

A quick comment on oil company profits - it's a capital-intensive business, and has operational risk. A lot of what they also do is collect taxes from consumers, and pay royalties to land owners, states, the USA, and many other governments.

Jim

[Curt Harms]

.....................................
Here at home, all our gas gets purchased at Costco. I used to buy in NJ because it was often 30 cents a gallon less expensive than here in PA, but after they raised the fuel taxes about a year or so ago, there was no incentive for me to cross the river anymore. Costco price is about the same and closer. Of course, that also means I'm not spending other money over there, either as a result...

BTW, what's "cash"??? LOL :D

Jersey gas is still 25-30 cents/gal. cheaper even with the .25/gal tax increase. And many small/independent Jersey stations charge 6 cents/gal. for credit or debit.

[Van Huskey]

Jersey gas is still 25-30 cents/gal. cheaper even with the .25/gal tax increase. And many small/independent Jersey stations charge 6 cents/gal. for credit or debit.


Speaking of NJ gas, I may be the odd duck but I hate someone filling my car up for me, I somehow feel violated, I always try to make sure I fill up in NY, DE, MD or PA so I can avoid the attendants. I feel the same way in Oregon, maybe even worse. There was a station I always filled up at in Eugene and they had attractive young women as attendants, they always cleaned my windshield and I couldn't help but feel like Dragline in Cool Hand Luke during the Lucille scene.

[Yathin Krishnappa]

I'm in Wyoming for the holidays and it was $3 ($2.999 to be accurate) for a gallon for diesel yesterday. Took about $100 to fill up my F-250. Lowest gasoline was about $2.20. I usually spend $0 on gas back home in New York. ;-)

I was thinking that the prices here would be cheaper considering the fact that there are oil fields everywhere and the fracking is in full swing.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

Normally the next county over is 3 or 4 cents cheaper than here. This past month, we are cheaper by that margin. Gas hovering about $2.50, although I paid $2.43 at a station last weekend. I figure it has something to do also with gas tax (our is the highest in the country) and distance from the refineries, and where the refineries get their crude. Sort of like the cost of fresh flounder in South Dakota vs Ocean City Maryland.

[Jim Becker]

Jersey gas is still 25-30 cents/gal. cheaper even with the .25/gal tax increase. And many small/independent Jersey stations charge 6 cents/gal. for credit or debit.

Paid $2.33 this morning at Costco in Warminster--Wawa was at $2.59. The Speedway in Ringoes NJ is $2.21 according to GasBuddy. (Shell is $2.39) That's just not enough difference to warrant a (longer) trip over the water at this point including the $1.00 toll if I don't want to go through New Hope and across the narrow bridge. However, if I had other business in New Jersey, it would be what I'd be doing. The only time I head that way at this point since my daughter no longer volunteers at Tabby's Place is to buy diesel at the Speedway for my Kubota.

[Stan Calow]

with crude oil prices dropping on the world market, the price is below what makes North American fracked oil and oil shale, etc., economically feasible. Gas is $1.82/gal around here (low tax state).

[Van Huskey]

with crude oil prices dropping on the world market, the price is below what makes North American fracked oil and oil shale, etc., economically feasible. Gas is $1.82/gal around here (low tax state).

I think outside of AK, MO has the lowest gas tax, MS is close too. WA, CA and PA have the highest IIRC, with PA in the top spot.

I just looked an was correct on taxes. The lowest avg gas prices as of today are MO, AK and SC and the highest are AK, CA and WA. The spread is 1.88 to 3.44.

[Edwin Santos]

The problem I have is I can't really get away from the numbers since I do my own taxes and since I still have a lot in equities and those are almost all index funds now so it is hard to miss the major market tickers when I watch any news.

Well the last trading day has made it worse unfortunately. Like you, I've been invested for a while, and keep telling myself that they're not paper losses, we're just giving back paper gains. Sigh, it's a marathon, not a sprint.

[Brian Elfert]

I'm in Wyoming for the holidays and it was $3 ($2.999 to be accurate) for a gallon for diesel yesterday. Took about $100 to fill up my F-250. Lowest gasoline was about $2.20. I usually spend $0 on gas back home in New York. ;-)

I was thinking that the prices here would be cheaper considering the fact that there are oil fields everywhere and the fracking is in full swing.

Cheyenne, Wyoming used to be the cheapest place along I-80 between California and Iowa to buy diesel, but that has changed in the past few years. Fuel pricing makes no sense when it comes to transporting refined fuel. Fuel next to a refinery can be much more expensive than at a station 150 miles from the refinery.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

Fuel oil is very close, but not the same and will, after a time, clog up diesel filters and screw up injectors. Fuel oil often doesn't have the additives to keep it from jelling up at low temperatures. Older diesel engines (more than 30 yrs old) seem to do ok with it, but a modern diesel engine might do a few tank fulls and then problems are likely to start showing up.